Found: SG1 style!
by Beka Alcott
Summary: The sequel to 'Lost: SG1 style! Read 'Lost' first, or this won't make sense. Summary: Sam and Jack are finally found after their long exile in Amdra, but what have they lost along the way? Decidedly and uncompromisingly SJ. COMPLETE!
1. Strange lands

**Found: SG1 style!**

_Here it is! This is the sequel I promised you for 'Lost: SG1 style!'. If you haven't read that story, go do it now, because otherwise this won't make much sense. I hope this can live up to the standard I set in Lost, and that you like it just as much!_

_**Disclaimer: **I don't own the stargate franchise or any of the characters featured within it. I just play with them for my own amusement._

_**Spoilers:** Umm ... no specific spoilers, but there will be references to some episodes and established people/situations. Oh wait, I tell a lie, there is a specific spoiler near the end for 'small victories'. You'll have to wait a while for that one though! ;-)_

_**Summary: **After an 18 year long exile in a galaxy far, far away, Major Samantha Carter and Colonel Jack O'Neill are rescued by SG-1 members past and present._

_Okay, enough waffle, and on with the story!_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

_18 years later . . . _

A young woman sprinted cat-like through the thick of the woods, a goa'uld staff weapon balanced perfectly in her strong, steady grasp. She stopped suddenly, silently, and waited with the patience of a warrior, invisible behind a tree, completely alert.

Three men and a woman were making their way towards her position, noisily, clumsily. She mapped their positions in her mind as she listened intently to the crunch of their boots. With an almost imperceptible movement, she signaled to the five young soldiers she was leading. They prepared themselves, and waited.

* * *

Teal'c glanced doubtfully at Daniel Jackson, increasingly sure that they were headed in the wrong direction. The woodland was dense, and appeared to be thickening. It was impossible that people made regular journeys through this forest; the archaeologist must have been mistaken.

38 year old Major Jennifer Haley was nervous. None of it showed – she was far too professional for that, but she was painfully aware of the stakes. It had been she who deduced the location of the 2 missing members of SG-1, and figured out how to get past the planet's unnatural electro-magnetic field. If they weren't here … but she had to believe they were. She knew that her voice had held significant weight when convincing the powers that be to let the four of them take the spaceship, perhaps more so than Dr Jackson's had. Her reputation was on the line here, and she knew it.

Major Simon Kennedy, leader of SG-1, frowned, deep in thought. Unlike his three companions, he had never known the two lost air force officers they were looking for. After 18 years, he wasn't convinced the pair were even still alive. The terrain certainly didn't look very hospitable, and he'd seen some nasty buggers on their trek through the jungle, which had looked decidedly poisonous. And yet Dr. Jackson had insisted that the strong energy signature was in _this_ direction.

Teal'c suddenly stopped, dead still, and lifted a hand to halt the other three. He listened intently, certain he'd heard movement up ahead.

Ten feet away, the young woman cursed silently. They'd been so careful, and she'd been certain they'd have the element of surprise on their side. She made a decision. With a swift hand movement, she signaled to the five others, and they leapt simultaneously from their hiding places, surrounding the outsiders, weapons raised. Teal'c, Major Haley and Major Kennedy raised their weapons instinctively, quickly noticing that they were in the weaker position, while Daniel raised his hands in a signal of acquiescence.

"We mean you no harm, we're just peaceful explorers." He explained quickly, eyeing Teal'c, Haley and Kennedy's weapons nervously.

"Who are you?" The girl demanded. Raised eyebrows made their way through the group from Earth, showing their slight surprise that the youngest and the only woman was the leader.

"We're from a planet called Earth." Kennedy explained. The young woman's eyes widened with surprise, and her companions muttered quietly to themselves. She held up a hand to silence them.

"Then you are among friends." She stated, and lowered her weapon, waving a hand to signal the others in her group to follow suit.

Kennedy exchanged a look with Haley, and they all lowered their weapons.

"You've heard of Earth?" Daniel asked the pretty, blonde young woman.

She nodded. "You must follow me." She set off in the direction they had been traveling before. Her men followed her.

Kennedy raised his eyebrows.

"Let's follow her, then." He said resignedly.

They eventually emerged in a large green field, with a village just visible at the other end of it.

"This is our home." The woman said, indicating the village ahead.

"Sweet." Kennedy muttered. The woman smiled to herself. He reminded her of someone.

The village was alive with activity. They could see houses being built, herds of sheep and cows being driven, and people walking around busily. The blonde woman led them through the rows of houses to a large building in the centre of the village. She opened the door and took them into a small room off the central hall.

"You can wait here. I have to find the people you wish to see." She turned and left them hurriedly.

The group of four – two the comparatively young members of SG-1, and the others ageing ex-team members, looked at each other excitedly.

"Jack and Sam _must_ be here! She knows we're here to see them!" Daniel enthused.

"She could be referring to the village elders for all we know." Kennedy replied skeptically.

"She did show considerable surprise and recognition when we mentioned Earth." Teal'c observed.

"But, we've encountered cultures who have heard of Earth before. This could just be one of those times." Haley reminded him. "I'd love it to be because Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter are here, but we haven't got any real evidence yet."

Teal'c looked mildly affronted. "Do you not believe the intelligence to be accurate?"

"It wouldn't be the first time we've had less than reliable intel from the jaffa, Teal'c." Kennedy said, earning himself a sour look from the ex-first prime of Apophis.

"The first prime of Gal'Tak was certain that he'd seen Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill on this planet." Teal'c insisted.

"The first prime of _Gal'Tak_ had never _seen_ them before. How do we know he didn't mistake them for someone else?"

"We've been over this." Daniel cut in tiredly, running a hand through his graying hair. "Let's just wait and see, shall we?"

Kennedy scowled and skulked over to the window to peer outside. "I'm just saying, if we've abandoned the fight against the Ori for a false alarm…" he trailed off, giving Haley a significant look. She refused to let it bother her though, and stared straight back at him.

Daniel and Teal'c exchanged nervously hopeful looks, and the four settled down to wait.

* * *

_So ... how was that for a starting point? As with 'Lost', I am positively EAGER for your feedback, so please press the little review button down in the corner and type to your heart's content!_

_Thrilled to be writing again. This is going to be fun!_

I HAVE PLACED A POLL ON MY PROFILE PAGE IN RELATION TO THIS STORY, TO HELP ME MAKE AN IMPORTANT PLOT DECISION. PLEASE GO TO MY PROFILE TO VOTE ON WHETHER SAM AND JACK'S DAUGHTER, TALLY, SHOULD HAVE BROTHERS AND SISTERS. POLL ENDS MONDAY 20TH JUNE.

_Beka :-D_


	2. Reunion

**_Found - part 2_**

_Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, and who voted in the poll! But, it's not closed yet, so keep voting on whether or not Sam and Jack should have any children besides Tally!!_

_Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

They sat in hopeful anticipation for a further 10 minutes, before the door opened again.

Suddenly the door was flung wide open. Daniel yelped as the door collided with his foot – he'd been looking out the window beside it. "Here they are." He heard the young woman who'd led them here announce from the behind the now open door.

"These our people?" Kennedy asked Haley and Teal'c who wore eerily similar grins.

"Indeed." Teal'c confirmed with a smile, stepping forward.

Sam and Jack stared at Haley and Teal'c, shocked.

It was Sam who reacted first.

"Oh my God!" She said in a hoarse voice, choked with emotion, rushing forward to fling her arms round Teal'c's neck in a tight embrace. Jack joined them a heartbeat later, before Sam moved on to hug Haley. They hadn't yet noticed Daniel, now standing behind them, grinning and waiting for them to see him.

"What took you so long?" Jack demanded jovially.

"It took Haley a while to figure out how to get past the planet's electro-magnetic field." Daniel said.

Sam and Jack spun round in shock.

"Daniel?" Sam asked incredulously.

Daniel crossed the room and enveloped Sam in a tight hug, before giving Jack a sarcastic grin. "I'm dead for one measly year, and you two manage to get yourselves marooned in another galaxy."

"Shut up." Jack said with a smile, and gave Daniel a hug too.

"But how . . . I mean, when . . . I can't believe you're okay." Sam said, fighting back tears.

Jack sobered, and gripped Daniel's shoulder. "I owe you everything, Daniel. Thank you."

Daniel frowned, and opened his mouth to ask what the hell Jack was talking about, but Kennedy interrupted.

"Is no one going to introduce me?" He asked, with a wry grin.

Haley cleared her throat. "Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, meet Major Simon Kennedy. Commanding officer of SG-1."

"They put a _Major_ in charge of SG-1?" Jack questioned.

Kennedy bristled. "Dr. Weir believed I was the best man for the job."

The young blonde woman at the door laughed sarcastically. Jack looked at her in surprise, questioningly.

"The best _man_ for the job." She repeated, smirking.

"Who exactly is this?" Kennedy asked, annoyed.

"_This_ is Tally O'Neill." She replied, stepping forward to join Jack and Sam.

"_O'Neill?_" Four pairs of eyebrows rose. Sam and Tally grinned identical grins. Jack put his arms round both of their shoulders.

"Yes."

"Oh." Daniel broke the silence. Kennedy groaned.

"Problem?" Sam challenged him.

"My orders are to find you and bring you both back to Earth." He told them.

Sam and Jack's smiles vanished. They looked at each other nervously.

"Go back to Earth?" Jack repeated. They all nodded, Daniel smiling broadly.

"Oh."

Tally looked up at her parents, alarmed. "We're not going, are we Dad?"

Jack frowned at Sam. "I don't know."

"What do you mean?" Daniel asked in innocent confusion.

"This is our home now, Daniel. Tally grew up here, it's the only home she's ever known. We're not sure we _want_ to go back."

There was an awkward silence.

"I'm afraid those orders weren't optional, Colonel. We have to bring you back with us." Kennedy stated.

"You can't force us to leave, _Major_." Jack retorted.

"We're not going to, Jack, we're just . . . gonna have to explain the situation to Dr. Weir." Daniel assured him hastily.

"Who is this 'Dr Weir'?" Sam asked.

"She is in command of Stargate Command." Teal'c informed them.

"Unfortunately." Kennedy muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack asked.

"She makes poor command decisions. She's a civilian and she has no idea what this is all about."

"That's not really fair, Major. She has a lot of experience, she was in command of the Atlantis expedition for over ten years." Daniel pointed out.

"Atlantis is not the same as the SGC. This is the first and only line of the defense we're talking about."

"You just don't like having a woman in charge." Tally smirked. Haley silently agreed with her.

_Yep, definitely Sam's daughter, _Daniel thought with a smile.

Kennedy was getting more and more angry with Jack, Sam and their feminist daughter by the second.

"Look, I don't care what you people have to say about where your home is. The bottom line is this: we're bringing you both back with us to the SGC, with or without _Tally_. Those are the orders, and that is what's going to happen. Are we clear?" He fumed.

"Exactly who do you think you are talking to, Major?" Jack asked in a quiet, dangerous voice. Tally glared at the irreverent Major, fists clenched. _I wish I still had my staff weapon so I could shove it up his ass,_ she thought.

"Maybe we should leave this issue for now and come back to it after some dinner?" Daniel suggested, trying to ease the tension in the room and stop the family of three from attacking Kennedy, literally. Sam noticed that Daniel was trying to ward off arguments, and with a great deal of effort she bit back her anger and supported him.

"That's probably a good idea. You can leave your weapons in the arms hut. Tally will show you where it is. We'll go and tell Karelle to expect visitors, and we'll meet you at the courtyard." She aimed this last piece of information at her daughter. Tally nodded, still glaring at Kennedy, and left the room. The visitors from Earth filed out, the three friendly faces smiling at Jack and Sam as they left.

Sam placed a comforting hand on Jack's still tense shoulder.

"Ignore him. He's a stuck up idiot with an ego problem."

"Yes he is, but I still outrank him, and if he makes one more crack about Tally I'm going to kick his smarmy little ass." Sam smiled. Even at over 60 years of age, she had no doubt Jack could do it.

"Tally can look after herself."

"Damn right she can. I'd love to see her put him in his place. And she will if he keeps pissing her off." Jack commented.

"She could win a fight against him any day." Sam smiled fondly.

"Come on, let's go warn Karelle about big-head." Jack said as he made for the door, with Sam chuckling as she followed.

* * *

_Ta-da! I am in all seriousness hanging my decision about whether or not Sam and Jack should have had another child on that poll, so please vote! And review! Of course review!_

_Beka :-)  
_


	3. Catching up

_**Found - part 3**_

_This chapter is dedicated to the briliiant and talented actor, the late Don S. Davis._

* * *

Tally walked with the four newcomers to the arms hut, Kennedy skulking ten feet behind them moodily.

"So, Tally, what have your parents told you about Earth?" Daniel asked conversationally.

"Origin of the human race, 70 covered with water, population of 6 billion, seven continents, one of them being North America, which has the United States of America, in which the SGC is located in the state of Colorado. The USA also has Minnesota where Dad's cabin is, as well as California where Mom grew up, and 'the windy city' of Chicago where Dad grew up. And then there's Russia where the second Stargate is, and where Mom's worst enemy works –"

"Who?" Daniel cut her off.

"Rodney McKay. Mom's also taught me a lot about the technology: computers, cars, televisions, microwave ovens . . ." Daniel grinned. "And she's taught me everything she knows about the F-302, and that's the one thing she could actually show me instead of just describing it."

"Are you a scientist too, then?" Haley asked. Tally smiled slightly.

"I guess. I help her maintain and work on our power system here, which she designed and built as I was growing up."

"You also seem to be a skilled warrior." Teal'c commented.

"Damn right. When Mom and Dad got here 18 years ago this planet was unbelievably sexist. The women weren't allowed to work on anything but cooking, sewing, cleaning and looking after the kids, and they weren't even allowed to speak their minds without the men's approval. Mom said Earth was once like that. But she changed it here. She showed them that women can work and fight just as well as men can, and she and I are living proof. We have to be; things may have improved here but it's still not up to Earth's current standards. We still come up against sexism way too often and women still don't have equal rights. I learnt to fight so I could prove that women can be just as skilled as warriors as men can."

"You demonstrate your cause exceptionally." Teal'c complimented her with a smile. Tally grinned.

"I can't believe I didn't see the resemblance between you and Sam before." Daniel said in disbelief. "You have _exactly_ the same smile."

Tally gave him a soft smile. "I never thought I'd actually get to meet you. Mom and Dad talk about you and what you did for us with the same reverence as some of the folks round here talk about Amdra. To be honest, we assumed you were dead."

Daniel frowned, reminded suddenly of the similar comment Jack had made. "What do you mean, 'what I did for you'?"

Tally opened her mouth, then closed it again. It suddenly occurred to her that maybe he didn't remember. "Maybe you should ask Mom and Dad. I don't remember it, since I was only about an hour old at the time."

She stopped outside a small brick building, and opened the door, leading them inside, and leaving Daniel with his confusion. Kennedy jogged to catch up.

"Whoa." He let out a low whistle. The entire building was jam-packed with goa'uld weapons. Haley and Daniel were staring in shock, and Teal'c was walking round admiring the array of staff weapons and zats.

"You know, for a quiet, peaceful village, you sure have a lot of weapons." Kennedy commented.

"Nearly a year ago now, the goa'uld Gal'Tak came with his jaffa in ships, and attempted to enslave us. They failed. They were caught in the electro-magnetic field, and were forced to make an emergency landing. Still, they demanded our surrender, but the eighteen villages of this world united as one and fought against them, led by my parents, with only bows and arrows for weapons. We took the weapons of every Jaffa we knocked down, until we had the majority of their staff weapons and zats. We told them that if they did not leave, we would use them. Mom turned off the electro-magnetic field so that the ships could fly, and they left." She told them. She closed her eyes for a moment, to gather her composure. Daniel exchanged a concerned look with Teal'c at Tally's shift in demeanor. _Keep it together, _Tally thought to herself._ He wouldn't want you falling apart over him._

Tally took a deep breath and continued. "Of course, Mom rigged the ships' main computers first, so that they would be flown in a straight line on autopilot for the next hundred or so years. They probably managed to hack in and correct that eventually, but we haven't had any trouble since then."

"You're saying you didn't use the weapons against them? You just let them go?" Haley checked.

"We only killed where absolutely necessary, but those circumstances were rare, and there was little jaffa blood shed." Teal'c nodded his approval. Kennedy looked skeptical.

"Oh please. You're telling me you gained the upper hand against an army that was planning on wiping you out – and then you just _let them go?_"

"We are not savage, Major. We do not value death, no matter what the intentions of the enemy."

"And yet you enjoy being a strong warrior."

"We train so that we do not have to take life. I never killed a single jaffa during the invasion, but I claimed the weapons of many."

"You can't have been old enough to be fighting then."

"I was sixteen. I have been training since I was eleven." She stared at him defiantly.

"Children shouldn't have to fight. If this place had the morals and ethics you claim it has, you'd have been tucked away with the other kids." Kennedy half sneered at her triumphantly. Tally snapped. She'd hated this man since the moment he'd started talking to her parents and displaying his prejudices. He was a certifiable jerk. And now he'd gone too far.

She lunged forward and hit him in the face with lightening movement and precision, so he didn't have time to react. He stumbled backwards, and put a hand to his face in shock and pain. Tally wasn't as tall as her mother, but she stood with the solid and balanced poise of a warrior, which made her seem much taller.

"Insult me or my people again and you'll regret the day you were born." She spoke with the quiet, dangerous voice her father had used earlier.

Kennedy flexed his jaw painfully, but didn't respond. Tally laughed quietly to herself. He really was all talk.

She turned back to Daniel, Haley and Teal'c, who had watched the scene with amazement, and were considerably impressed.

"This way. Dinner must be ready by now." She walked straight past Kennedy, who glared at her back. The other three exchanged looks, and then followed her. Kennedy fell back into step ten feet behind, sulking.

* * *

By the time they reached the long trestle tables in the courtyard, they were already packed with all of the men and a few women. Women still moved between the tables serving food, as it had been when Sam and Jack had first arrived. Tally found her parents sitting with Karelle. She led the four newcomers over to them.

Jack introduced the visitors from Earth to the Karelle, who was now very elderly, and a widow. They sat and ate with her, while Sam and Jack caught up with the affairs of Earth over the last eighteen years.

When Jack got bored of listening to Sam talk to them about technological advances made on Earth, he cut in.

"So, who's President now?"

"Robert Kinsey." Kennedy replied. Sam and Jack looked disgusted.

"You're kidding."

"He's the best President we've had in a very long time." Kennedy said defiantly.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"He always did have talent for worming his way into power." Sam observed. "How old is he now? I'm surprised he's still fit for that kind of work."

"Healthcare has come a long way since you left." Haley told her. "And people as powerful as Kinsey get to take full advantage of it."

"Wonder who he blackmailed to get the big chair this time." Jack pondered. Kennedy disliked this family more and more by the second.

"He was voted for legitimately." He said evenly.

"Ha! He never did _anything_ legitimately!"

"You'd do well not to criticize him so openly when you come back to Earth, Colonel. It might not go down too well with your commander-in-chief."

Jack groaned. "I thought we'd already told you. We're not going back. Sure, we'll visit. But we live here now."

"And I thought I'd already explained to you, it isn't an option."

"Is your face bruised?" Sam said suddenly. Tally smirked. Jack smiled at his daughter proudly.

"Atta girl." He murmured.

Kennedy decided it was best not to push the subject, in case the seventeen year old decided to tell her father publicly exactly how he'd got that bruise.

"So, how did you get here?" Sam asked. "New versions of the 302's?"

"Ah! You're gonna love this!" Daniel told her smiling.

"The X-307." Haley said, proudly. Sam and Jack's mouths dropped open.

"Three-O-_Seven?_"

"Also known as the Gemini. A much advanced version of the X-303." Teal'c explained.

"The Prometheus?" Sam asked.

"Oh, she is _so_ much more than the Prometheus." Haley said with gusto.

"More like the Starship Enterprise, actually." Kennedy commented.

"We've established an alliance with the Furlings. They don't give us much, but they have shared some of their engine and deep space sensors technology with us."

"With which Jennifer Haley was able to detect the electro-magnetic field before we got caught in it like you did."

Jack was still open-mouthed. "You met the Furlings? _Without _me?"

"What kind of engine technology?" Sam asked.

"I'll show you if you like. The ship's in orbit around this planet." Haley offered. Sam opened her mouth to accept, but Jack intervened.

"Oh no you don't! If you go up now you'll be there all night, and we could all do with some sleep."

"I'm afraid we don't have enough room for you all to sleep together. You will have to be split between families with beds available." Karelle apologized.

"That's OK, we have quarters on the ship. We can go back there easily."

"How?" Sam asked. She knew they didn't know about the rings yet, and they couldn't be assuming it was easy for her to turn off the electro-magnetic field.

"The Furlings also shared with us their transporter technology, and Jennifer Haley discovered a 'blind spot' in the electro-magnetic field." Teal'c smiled at Sam's widening eyes.

_Boy, I gotta see that . . ._ Sam thought longingly.

* * *

_As always, please review! _

_Also, I kinda guessed about where Sam grew up, as I didn't actually know. I chose California because I think Sam said at some point in the first season that she had a brother in San Diego, which if memory serves is in California (please correct me if that's wrong). I figured maybe Mark might have stayed in the state he grew up in, while Sam moved around with her job._

_Beka_


	4. You saved my life

**_Found - part 4_**

_Here's the next chapter! Please review - it encourages me to write and post faster! It's not blackmail - honest! :-P (cheeky grin)_

* * *

As they finished their meal and got up to leave, Daniel caught Haley's arm. "I'll be here a little while longer. I want to talk to Jack and Sam." He told her. Haley nodded and smiled, understanding that he might want a chance to catch up with his old friends.

"We'll leave the lights on for you." She said.

Daniel then went back to the table where Sam, Jack and Tally still sat.

"So …" he said slowly, as he sat down.

"So…?" Jack echoed.

"You guys have made a few very … _confusing_, comments. I get the feeling you know something about the time I spent ascended."

Sam and Jack exchanged a long look. "I'll tell him. We'll go for a walk." Sam said, her eyes never straying from Jack's.

Eventually Jack gave in, grudgingly giving up the opportunity to tell Daniel himself. "Okay. Don't take all day about it though, the 'ole spacemonkey and I have some catching up to do." He grinned at Daniel, who rolled his eyes at the old nickname.

Sam got up and looped her arm through Daniel's. "Come on you. We've got some talking to do."

* * *

Sam took Daniel up to the hill that she and Jack used to go to in the evenings, and sat down, patting the ground next to her to indicate Daniel should do the same.

"I take it you don't remember visiting us here while you were ascended?" Sam started, squinting at him against the evening sun and her failing eyesight.

Daniel shook his head. "No. Oma made me forget."

"Oma?" Sam's eyebrows rose.

Daniel waved his hands. "Long story. Tell me what happened here."

Sam took a deep breath. "Short answer: you saved my life and the life of my daughter." She frowned, looking out towards the horizon as she gathered her thoughts.

"Less than a year after we arrived here, we found a lab that had been built by an Ancient named Rokezar. It's fascinating; we've learned so much from it in the time since then. Originally though, it caused us some problems. A council member named Nassem – a real arrogant self-centered son of a bitch if ever there was one – found it first, and set off a sub-space signal, which was so powerful it had the potential to reach a goa'uld and alert them to our presence. That's when you showed up. You pretended to be an automated hologram in order to get Nassem to either turn the signal off, or get me to help him do it. Unfortunately, Nassem's pride stopped him asking for my help, and the Ancients' non-interference laws stopped you from telling him directly how to do it.

"Eventually though, Jack and I found the lab too. We ringed down there, but were trapped for a while when we couldn't find the controls for the rings, as they were operated by a remote that Nassem had. Jack discovered that he could turn on the power in there, and between us we figured out that someone had been down there and turned on the sub-space signal. When Nassem came down in the morning, it was clear he was the culprit. He, uh, summoned the _hologram_, which of course was you, and you told us that Nirrti was nearby, and might pick up the signal if we couldn't turn it off."

Daniel's eyebrows shot upwards. "_Nirrti_? Wow. We haven't heard a thing about her since before you guys went missing. It's like she just vanished."

Sam smiled slightly. "In a way, that's what happened. We weren't able to turn off the signal in time, and she came for us. You and I were alone in the lab when the first jaffa came down in the rings. Obviously there was nothing you could do without breaking your Ancient laws, and so they took me."

Daniel looked shocked. "God, Sam … I can't believe I let that happen. I'm so sorry."

She squeezed his hand. "Don't worry, you redeemed yourself. Once Nirrti had me, she quickly found out that I was pregnant. You tried to reason with her, and when that didn't work you threatened her, but she wouldn't let me go. She told me –" Sam swallowed, still uncomfortable with reliving this particular memory. Daniel rubbed her arm supportively.

"She told me that she was going to take my baby, and experiment on her. She was trying to make the perfect host, you see. Anyway, at some point they knocked me out, and when I came round, I was in a cell, I felt awful, and I wasn't pregnant anymore."

Daniel closed his eyes. "_No_." He whispered.

"It's okay. You turned up, and you told me that my baby girl was alright. Nirrti had accelerated her growth to make her a fully-developed baby, but she hadn't hurt her yet. I begged you to help us, and … I guess you just couldn't bear to stand by and do nothing anymore. You told me you could destroy Nirrti, and get me and Tally back to Jack. You didn't know what the others would do to you though, or even if they'd allow you to do what you could before they intervened. You disappeared for a while, and Nirrti turned up to roast my brains with her hand device. She wanted information, but I wouldn't tell her anything. When torturing me didn't work, she brought out Tally. I swear, Daniel, I almost broke. If you hadn't stepped in right then … but you did. Nirrti held something over Tally – one of her medical devices, I don't know what it was for – but just as it began to glow, everything went white … and that was you. Jack was about to be killed by jaffa back on the planet – you saved him too – and then, according to him, there was a bright white light and he found himself here on the hillside with me and our baby next to him. The ship was gone, the jaffa were gone. You saved us all."

She watched Daniel carefully once she'd finished her story. He was frowning, and staring out into the distance. He suddenly turned his sharp gaze on her.

"I really did that?"

Sam smiled. "Yeah, you did."

"And that's why Oma sent me back." He muttered.

"Daniel?" Sam prodded after a moment, which he'd spent lost in thought.

Daniel shook himself back to the present. "I woke up on a planet with no memory of who I was, much less where I'd come from. SG-3 found me there, and Teal'c convinced me to come back with him. Once I was home, my memory came back … but I never remembered my time as an ascended being."

Sam nodded. "Maybe the mortal mind can't handle that kind of concept of self." She suggested.

Daniel smiled at her softly. "I missed you."

She smiled back, and rested her head on her old friend's shoulder. "I missed you too."

* * *

_Yes, I know, very short, and probably a little boring if you've read Lost recently and remember exactly what happened. But I wanted Daniel to find out what he did and there didn't seem to be any way of doing that properly without a little recapping._

_THE POLL: The results came out with an overwhelming majority wanting Tally to have other sibling(s). So, she will have. I know nothing's been mentioned explicitly yet, but trust me, there is a reason, and all will be revealed! Unfortunately it does mean I have to do a little re-writing so it may take a little longer between chapters, but ultimately the story will be better for it. It needed a little added something. _

_Please please PLEASE review! I want to know if you're still enjoying it!_

_Beka_


	5. Conundrums

**_Found - part 5_**

_Here's chapter 5! Enjoy!_

* * *

Sam settled into bed beside Jack in their bedroom. It wasn't the two-room wooden hut they'd had when they first arrived, but a four-room brick house, complete with three bedrooms, a large bathroom, and a living area with space for Sam to work.

Jack lifted his arm and Sam snuggled against his body, with her head in that familiar nook between his neck and shoulder.

"They can't make us leave, can they?" She asked him worriedly.

"Nah. If Kennedy is really gonna stick his oar in with his precious orders, I can pull rank. And if he doesn't accept that, then he's denying that my rank still stands and we are therefore not part of the air force and not under their jurisdiction."

"If we're still considered part of the air force then he can just arrest us."

"For what?"

"Breaking regulations."

"What regulations?"

Sam gave him a look. "Fraternization."

"Oh come on, we've been here eighteen years, for crying out loud! They can't possibly arrest us for that!"

"Why not? There's no time limit on the regs."

Jack went quiet. "He can't force us to leave." He said firmly. Sam looked up at him.

"He can't force us because Daniel and Teal'c wouldn't back him up, and dollars to doughnuts Haley wouldn't either. He wouldn't stand a chance against the six of us." Jack reasoned. Sam sighed.

"I hope you're right."

She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, inhaling the comforting, familiar scent of her husband. "You know, there is something that makes me want to go."

Jack stared at the ceiling and sighed. "Yeah, I thought of that too."

"Would it be fair to Tally? To ask her to give up everything she's ever known on the off-chance that the SGC is willing to expend resources to help us?"

Jack rolled over to look at her. "Would it be fair to Luke not to?"

Tears filled Sam's eyes. "What do we do?"

Jack pulled her close and buried his face in her hair. "I don't know. But we'll figure it out."

* * *

Tally lay in bed, listening. She could hear her parents talking quietly, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. She sighed and sat up, pulling on a pair of trousers under her night-shirt. Very slowly and quietly, she made her way to the window, opened it, and climbed out.

Outside, she ran softly through the maze of houses that made up the village of Amdra, following a route so familiar it was almost automatic. Approaching a large brick house, she cautiously peered through the window.

The silhouette of a young man appeared in it, walking out of the darkness.

"You're late tonight."

"We had to –" Tally started.

"It's OK, I know." He cut her off. Tally climbed through his window elegantly, and the eighteen year-old boy pulled her into his arms, kissing her softly. Tally sighed.

"I missed you today."

"I missed you too. What are the Earth people like?" He stroked her face softly.

"Daniel and the woman are nice. The jaffa is too, but the Major's a jerk." Tally scowled remembering him. The boy chuckled at her expression.

"How many times did you hit him?"

"I resent that! I do not attack everyone who classifies as a jerk!" Tally argued.

"No, but from what I hear, this guy has been getting at you since you met, and is incredibly sexist."

"Who told you that?"

"It was a rumor. Everyone's hearing it from everyone." He told her. Tally leaned her head against his strong, solid chest.

"I only hit him once."

The boy grinned. "Go Taz."

She shivered slightly in the draft from the window, and he wrapped his arms around her more tightly, laying his cheek against her soft, blonde hair.

"I love you, Jase." She whispered softly. Jase kissed her forehead tenderly.

"I love you too."

* * *

Kennedy and Daniel sat at one of the trestle tables at breakfast, arguing. Teal'c and Haley sat with them, but chose not to join in. Jack, Sam and Tally sat together further down the table, out of ear-shot.

"When Dr. Weir gave that order, she didn't anticipate that they'd want to stay. If she knew that, she'd take it back, and you know she would." Daniel argued. Kennedy shook his head in frustration.

"You don't get it Daniel. An order is an order. If I disobey that order, I could be court-martialed."

"Not if you explained to her that they wouldn't leave. You can't force people to leave their homes if they don't want to. You'd have to physically drag them and I doubt you'd manage to overcome one of them, let alone all three."

"That girl caught me off guard yesterday. If I didn't have a principle about hitting women and children I'd have flattened her."

"Somehow I doubt that. You heard her, she's been training for six years, and _Jack and Sam_ taught her. Don't underestimate her."

"Daniel, I can take a seventeen year-old girl." Kennedy said, annoyed.

"She's not any old seventeen year-old. She's Sam and Jack's daughter."

"So you keep saying." Kennedy sighed. They obviously weren't ever going to agree. He doubted Teal'c would take his side either, and he couldn't say for certain that Major Haley would follow an order to help him take them against their will. _Oh well, _he thought, _I'll just have to do this alone._

* * *

Further down the table, the O'Neill family were having there own difficult discussion.

"Tally, your father and I had a talk last night, about what Kennedy wants us to do." Sam started. Tally ducked her head.

"You want to go back." She whispered.

"We think it's worth considering." Jack told her.

"Why? You said that this was your home now! You said you didn't _want _to go back!" Tally said desperately.

"There are other factors to consider." Sam said gently.

"Such as?" Tally demanded.

"Luke." Jack said simply.

Tally's mouth opened in surprise, and then she looked at the table, a little ashamed.

"We think the SGC might be able to help us find him." Sam said eventually. "At the very least, our chances are infinitely better if we go back to Earth rather than stay here."

Tally nodded, unable to speak.

"I'm sorry honey." Sam said, squeezing her daughter's hand. Tally gave her a half smile, and laid her head on Sam's shoulder.

"I understand."

* * *

_As always, please please PLEASE review! There is nothing I like more than getting feedback, especially if it helps me write better for you!_

_Beka :-)_


	6. Heartache

**_Found - part 6_**

_Hey guys! Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed so far - I love you all! As for Luke ... all will be revealed! But not in this chapter. Sorry. Got a bit more confusing you to do before you get any answers!_

* * *

"And this is the bridge!" Daniel proclaimed, concluding the tour of the X-307. Sam walked round the consoles, marveling at how far Earth had progressed while she'd been gone. Jack's eyes suddenly lit up, and he made a beeline for the centre chair, sinking into it with a happy sigh.

"Captain Kirk, eat your heart out!" Jack quipped, wriggling to get comfy. Sam laughed and shook her head.

"So where are the crew?" Sam asked, noticing how eerily silent the ship felt.

"We don't have one. As it is we barely got permission to use the ship to come here. Dr. Weir didn't want to spread our resources too thin. We're having problems with a new enemy known as the Ori." Haley explained.

Tally had wandered off, staring out of a window at the stars. She became aware of someone watching her, and turned to see Teal'c standing behind her. He joined her at the window.

"Something is on your mind, Tally O'Neill." He stated.

"Yeah, I guess." She sighed.

"Do you wish to discuss it?" Tally thought for a moment, and then turned to look up at him.

"Teal'c . . . do you ever get scared?"

Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "Fear is a warrior's greatest enemy." He answered.

"You didn't answer the question."

Teal'c smiled. "Yes, I have known fear."

"Have you ever been scared of losing . . . everything?" She asked uncertainly. Teal'c frowned.

"To what are you referring?"

Tally took a deep breath. "I'm scared that we'll have to go to Earth, and leave Amdra. I'm scared of losing my home, and everyone I know. I'm scared . . ." She trailed off, not sure whether she should tell him her greatest fear.

"You are afraid of losing someone for whom you care deeply." Teal'c said quietly. Tally looked up at him in surprise. Teal'c smiled.

"I observed you leaving your home late at night. I assume you were visiting this person."

"I thought you went up to the ship?"

"I did not. I chose to take the opportunity of sleeping beneath the stars."

Tally smiled. "Yeah, I was visiting him. And I'm terrified that we'll have to go and I'll never see him again." Her voice shook slightly as she finished speaking, betraying the depth of her fear. Teal'c turned towards her, frowning.

"You are in love with him." He observed. There were tears in Tally's eyes as she answered.

"Yes."

* * *

Both Teal'c and Tally were quiet as they all ate their dinner that evening, lost in thought. Teal'c was concerned for the young woman, who was obviously deeply in love with this boy. He knew that if Kennedy managed to persuade O'Neill and Major Carter to leave, their daughter would suffer greatly.

Tally was oblivious to the world around her. She was thinking about the conversation she'd had with Teal'c earlier in the day, and how he had seen right through her, into her heart. She wondered whether he knew her deepest secret, and whether she could trust him enough to tell him. One thing she knew for certain – she couldn't tell her parents yet, about Jase or about her situation.

* * *

When she met Jase that night, she talked to him about her fears.

She lay in his arms, warm next to him in his bed with her head resting against his chest, exactly as her parents lay together each night, unbeknown to her. She closed her eyes, struggling for words, but knowing they had to talk about it.

Jase sensed her inner turmoil, and held her closer in his arms, trying to comfort her.

"It'll be OK, Tally." He whispered. Tally sighed.

"I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"What?"

"Pretend. Pretend that I don't love you, that I wouldn't die for you. Pretend that this isn't happening, that I'm not –"

"Shhh." He cut her off, stroking her hair soothingly. "We're gonna be OK. What matters at the end of all this is that we're together, and the love we have. Nothing and no one can change that."

"But what if my parents want to go back to Earth? I'd have to go with them, but it would kill me! It would kill me to have to leave you. And then what would happen when they found out about this?" She was on the verge of tears, terrified of a million different 'what if's.

"Do you want to tell your parents?" Jase asked quietly. Tally sighed again.

"I don't know. It's killing me with them not knowing, but I'm scared of how they'd react. What would they say if they found out I'm sleeping with you?"

"You don't have to tell them everything at once. You could start with the fact that we're in love. That might stop them over-reacting about the rest."

"It's going to be obvious that we've made love if we leave it too much longer." Tally said quietly. Jase let his hand drift down to his lover's stomach, and he caressed her softly.

"What do you want to do?"

Tally thought carefully. "I want to tell Teal'c." Jase started in surprise.

"The jaffa?"

"He already knows how I feel about you, and that I've been visiting you after dark."

"What? How?"

"We talked yesterday. He understands. I never meant to tell him, he just seemed to see right through me. And he saw me coming here yesterday."

"Did he see you tonight?"

"I don't know, but it doesn't matter. We can trust him, Jase. He won't betray my trust."

"How do you know? You've only known him two days."

"I just . . . know. I can't explain it. He just seems to understand me, maybe because we're both warriors, I don't know . . . but he's trustworthy – that much I'm sure about." She assured him. Jase nodded – he had faith in Tally's judgment.

"OK. Do you want me to be there when you talk to him?"

"No, I think it would be easier if it was just me. I'll do it tomorrow, the first chance I get." She decided. She sighed in contentment at having released her fears – sharing them with Jase always seemed to make it look better. Jase smiled and gave her a gentle, comforting squeeze, filled again with the blissful peace he always got from holding her in his arms. He smiled into her soft, blonde hair, and they drifted off to sleep together.

* * *

_Ta da! Please review! Expecially anxious to know what you think of this chapter!_

_Beka_


	7. Telling Teal'c

**_Found - part 7_**

_I have finished up to chapter 13! Wooo! However, having written the basics of this story several years ago, I'd forgotten that I didn't actually finish it, and with the adding of Luke there's quite a bit more for me to write. I can see this story turning out as long as 'Lost' was. Anyhoo, all the more fun for me! Hope you're still enjoying it. I'm having a ball with it, now that I have so much free time to devote to writing!_

_As always, please R&R!_

* * *

Tally woke at four, and cursed silently at having allowed herself to fall asleep with Jase. It was too dangerous – they could easily be caught. She silently eased away from her lover, and kissed the top of his head lightly before climbing nimbly through the window and running swiftly towards home.

She was moving cat-like through the village, ever alert for fear of being caught. Suddenly, she stopped, hidden in the shadows as a lone figure moved up ahead. The figure paused, listening intently.

_Crap,_ Tally cursed silently, _they heard me_. She stayed stock still in the darkness, praying the person would move on. But he didn't.

She watched as he started to move towards her, slowly and silently. As he got closer, she recognized the strong, muscle-bound body. It was Teal'c. She breathed a sigh of relief and moved out of the shadows.

"Teal'c, it's just me." She whispered.

"Tally O'Neill?"

"Yes. Sorry I scared you."

Teal'c lifted his head in a dignified way. "You did not." Tally smiled.

"You are returning from the home of your lover." Teal'c observed. Tally winced at how weird that sounded coming from a friend of her parents. She tried to stop thinking of him as a friend of her parents and instead as someone to give her much needed guidance.

"Teal'c, can we talk?"

"I believe we are doing so."

"No, I mean, can I ask for your advice about something personal?" Teal'c raised an eyebrow.

"Is something troubling you?" There was concern in his voice now.

"No. Yes, I mean . . ." Tally didn't know how to explain what she was feeling. Teal'c sensing her frustration, led her out of the dark road, to a clearing at the edge of the woods.

"If you wish, we can discuss it aboard the Gemini." He offered. Tally smiled.

"Yes please." Teal'c led the young woman through the woods beyond Amdra, and then took a small device from a pocket in his BDUs.

In a flash they were in the ship's transporter room.

Tally followed him through the corridors of the ship, and into the commissary. They sat at one end of the long table, opposite each other.

"What is it that you are concerned about?" Teal'c asked her gently.

"Teal'c, if I tell you something, will you promise not to tell another living soul until I've told Mum and Dad myself?" Tally asked. Teal'c was worried by the sincerity in her voice.

"As you wish."

Tally paused, not sure how to start. "I told you yesterday that I was in love with someone." Teal'c nodded.

"His name is Jase. We have been friends for my whole life, but over the past couple of years, it has developed into something more. Now I love him, more than I even understand, and he loves me. I know what it must look like – sneaking away to his house at night – but I don't go to his house to have sex with him. I go to his house at night to see him, and be with him without having to hide how I feel. We usually spend an hour together, just talking and being together, and then I leave. Tonight I fell asleep with him, which was why I am coming back now. I never intended to spend the night there – I guess I was so exhausted with anxiety that when I relaxed with him I couldn't help but fall asleep. It's just . . . with you coming now, I am absolutely terrified about what the future holds." She paused for a moment, trying to find the words to tell him the real problem.

"Why do you feel that you must hide your feelings for Jase from your parents?" Teal'c asked her, breaking into her reverie. She looked up at him in surprise.

"I can't tell them. It would cause too much trouble." Teal'c frowned, not understanding. Tally elaborated.

"It's all to do with history. When the goa'uld first took our people to this planet from Earth, they forced them to work as slaves. But, three hundred years later, there was one man who stood up to them. He stirred a rebellion among the slaves, and overthrew the goa'uld Nefru, exposing him as a false god. That man's name was Amdra. Our village is named after him. Amdra became the leader of the free slaves, and they formed villages. Amdra himself lived in this village, which is why it is named after him. All through history, his bloodline has been treated like royalty." She explained.

"I do not see how this is relevant to your relationship with Jase." Teal'c frowned.

"Jase is the youngest generation of that bloodline. He is a direct descendant of Amdra, and as such, he has responsibilities. One of which, is to ensure that the bloodline remains pure."

"Would the people of this village not believe you to be a suitable match?"

"No, for two reasons. One, I'm considered to be a Tau'ri, despite the fact that I grew up here, and so I class as a foreigner, who would pollute the bloodline. And two, I am a warrior, and I would be considered a disgrace to the name of Amdra, even though most people here have accepted the fact that I am as strong and skilled as any male warrior."

Teal'c nodded his understanding. "And so you feel that to reveal your relationship would cause much controversy."

Tally sighed. "Yes."

"Do you not feel that your parents would understand, and support you?"

"Maybe, but Dad hates Jase's family. They were really stubborn about Mom and Dad helping in the fight against the goa'uld a year ago, especially Mom. They said it was an insult to Amdra that outsiders should lead them, and that women should be allowed to fight. Mom tries to get along with them, but they just won't accept us, and you know what Dad's like." Teal'c smiled.

"That's why we have to meet in secret. But soon we won't have a choice, we'll have to admit that we're in love."

"Because of our presence here, and the threat of having to leave this planet?"

"No. Because . . ." Tally broke off, suddenly not sure whether she should tell him.

"What is it?"

"This is the bit that you have to promise not to tell anyone." She warned him. Teal'c nodded.

"We'll have to tell them soon, because . . . Jase and I . . . we're having a baby." She said quickly, unable to meet Teal'c eye, and staring instead at her hands, her cheeks burning.

"You are pregnant?" Teal'c was shocked. He hadn't expected this, not after Tally had assured him their relationship was not sexual.

"We never meant it to happen, we just . . . got carried away one night. It only happened once, but apparently once is all it takes."

Teal'c frowned, deep in thought. "You will have to inform your parents." He told her.

"I know." She said quietly. "Teal'c . . . I'm so scared." She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, betraying the depth of her fear.

"Will Jase stand by you when the truth comes out?" Teal'c asked her gently.

"Yes." She answered, knowing in her heart it was the truth.

"Then you need not be afraid, for you will never be alone."

Tally nodded, the tears spilling from her eyes, falling in tracks down her cheeks. Teal'c reached across the table and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Your mother and father will also be there for you. I am sure of it."

"But what about the rest of the village? And what if we have to go back to Earth?"

"That is precisely why you must inform your parents. They _must_ know your situation, so that they do not make the wrong decision for you."

Tally ducked her head. "It's not just me they have to consider though." She said quietly.

Teal'c raised his eyebrows. "They are honorable people. They would not act selfishly if their daughter's welfare was at stake." His voice was measured and indignant as he defended his friends.

"I didn't mean it like that, I meant … I'm not their only child."

Teal'c frowned, surprised. "I have not seen, nor have they mentioned another child."

"I had a brother." Tally looked up at him, her eyes shining with tears. "Luke Daniel O'Neill. He was kidnapped by the goa'uld when they attacked a year ago. Mom and Dad think that if they go back to Earth, the SGC might help them to find him."

Teal'c nodded, the seriousness of the situation weighing heavily upon him.

"Still, your parents must be informed of your situation." He studied her face. "I believe you know this."

Tally nodded, and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "I just … I want to find Luke too. And I don't want my … my _carelessness_ to get in the way of that. And I'm just so scared."

"There is no shame in being afraid, or of admitting your feelings." Teal'c said gently.

"I've tried my whole life to be a strong warrior, like Mom and Dad, but now I'm afraid of being a mother to this baby. I can't help feeling ashamed."

"You must have faith in yourself. Faith is the source of all strength." Teal'c advised her. She looked him in the eye, took a deep breath, and nodded.

"You're right. There's no point wasting time being scared. It serves no one."

* * *

_The one thing I really regretted during 'Lost' was that there was no opportunity for me to write for Teal'c. He's an awesome character, and I only hope I can do him justice. Being a 19 year old writing for a 150-ish year old is no easy task!_

_Thanks for reading!_

_Beka :-)_


	8. Confessions

**_Found - part 8_**

_I'm afraid that this is a terribly mushy emotional chapter. What can I say, I couldn't help myself! I try to right something with a plot and substance, but every now and then, the instinctual mush creeps out ... :-P_

* * *

When Sam woke that morning, she immediately had a sense that something was wrong. Looking over at Jack, she saw that he was sleeping peacefully. Frowning, she got up and went to Tally's room. The bed was empty. She came back to her own room, and dressed quickly, not waking Jack.

She walked through the village, wondering where her daughter could have gone to, this early in the morning. Turning the corner into the courtyard, her question was answered. Tally was seated at one of the long trestle tables, facing away from her.

Sam quietly walked over to her, and sat down beside her. Tally started as she became aware of her mother's presence – she'd let her guard down while she was thinking.

"Mom! I didn't hear you coming."

"Apparently so. What are you doing up this early?" Sam smiled at her and stroked her hair out of her face. Tally swallowed and looked down at her hands on the table.

"Thinking." She replied. Sam frowned, and studied her. Tally's eyes were puffy, and had lost their sparkle, her shoulders were hunched, and there was a tight set to her lips. Sam recognized easily the signs of fatigue, and it looked like she'd been crying.

"Honey, what is it?" She asked, worried. She slipped her arm round Tally's shoulders, as her daughter looked up at her with eyes brimming with fresh tears.

"Mom . . ." Tally's voice quavered, and Sam pulled her into a close hug as she burst into tears.

In the arms of her mother, Tally couldn't hold it in any longer. She hadn't cried properly in a long time, but it had gotten too much to bear. Sam held her protectively as sobs racked Tally's seventeen year-old body, aching with the strain of worry, fear, exhaustion and pregnancy.

Sam's heart was breaking as she held Tally. She had no idea what had triggered this profound emotion in her daughter, but she knew that for her to be crying like this something must have hurt her deeply. Tears filled her own eyes as she cradled Tally, wishing she knew what was wrong so that she could fix it.

Tally pulled away, still sobbing. "Mom, I'm sorry, I'm really really sorry . . . I never meant for things to be like this, I hate lying to you, I just . . . can't . . ." she sobbed.

"What is it, Tally? Tell me what it is, and I'll fix it." Sam pleaded with her. Tally shook her head.

"You can't fix it! It's all my fault, and I don't know what to do!" She sobbed, delirious with crying and tiredness. Sam pulled her close again and wrapped her arms round her protectively.

"It's OK, Tally, it'll be alright. Don't cry, baby, it's gonna be fine." Sam tried to comfort her with soothing words, delivering them shakily as she cried with her daughter.

Eventually Tally's sobs subsided, her face buried in her mother's chest as Sam stroked her hair as she held her. When Tally pulled away, she couldn't look Sam in the eye.

"What is it, Taz?" Sam asked her again. Tally, still sniffing and gulping, looked down at her knees as she spoke.

"There's something I haven't told you . . . there's so much I haven't told you." Tally was still half-crying.

"What haven't you told me? Whatever it is, I promise I won't be mad." Sam assured her. Tally tried in vain not to cry harder.

"You should be mad. I'm in so much trouble." Tally sniffed.

"What trouble?"

"I told Teal'c earlier this morning. He said I had to tell you. He was right."

"Tell me what?"

"Mom . . . I fell in love." Tally confessed. Sam gave a stifled chuckle.

"Yeah? Who with?"

"Jase." Sam closed her eyes.

"Oh Tally . . . what happened? He broke your heart, didn't he?"

"No, it's much worse than that."

"How?"

"He loves me too. And we've been seeing each other."

"You have? I never noticed."

"You weren't meant to. We've been hiding it, cos we knew everyone would be angry. Jase isn't s'posed to get involved with someone like me."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean? There's nothing wrong with you!" Sam protested.

"Mom, you know he's supposed to marry a nice, normal, reserved girl who comes from this planet."

"You were born here! You do come from this planet!"

"That's not what everyone else thinks. They think I'm just as alien to this world as you are."

Sam smiled sadly. "How long have you been seeing him?"

"Since the war with the goa'uld ended. We've had feelings for each other since way before that, but that's when we started seeing each other. You're gonna be really mad at me when you find out."

"Oh honey, I won't be mad. I couldn't be mad at you, not when you're this upset. I just want to make it alright for you."

"You can't." More tears ran down Tally's cheeks. "It's too late, I've screwed up big-time."

Sam sighed and stroked her daughter's face, wiping away the fresh tears. "Tally." She said gently. Tally didn't respond, but still sat with her head bowed, crying slightly.

"Tally." Sam said more forcefully. Tally looked up, and Sam looked her directly in the eye.

"Tally, I promise you, whatever it is that's happened, I won't think any less of you." She said with a quiet seriousness that made Tally believe her.

"You can't know that." Tally argued uncertainly.

"Oh yes I can. You're my daughter, and I love you so much. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that you could do to change that. Okay?"

Tally gave her a small grateful smile, her eyes still shining with tears. "I love you too, Mom."

Sam smiled at her, and put an arm round her shoulders, giving her a comforting squeeze. "Now, how about you tell me what this is all about?"

Tally closed her eyes, and sighed deeply. She knew she had to do it. There wasn't a choice.

"Mom, I told you that I've been seeing Jase for a year." She started.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"I've been seeing him after dark. When everyone else is asleep." She waited for this information to sink in.

"You mean you've been sneaking out of the house after Dad and I have gone to sleep?" Sam asked after a pause.

Tally bowed her head. "Yes. I'm sorry, I hated doing it behind your backs, but I didn't have a choice."

"OK. That was a shock but it can't possibly be what was making you cry." Sam said calmly.

"No." Tally whispered. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, and paused, not sure how to say it.

"Mom . . . I . . . I slept with him." She didn't dare look up at her mother's face, for fear of her reaction. Sam smiled slightly.

"And you regret it?" She asked gently. Tally shook her head.

"No, I don't, I mean . . . it shouldn't have happened, there are rules and we shouldn't have . . . but it just felt right, I love him and he loves me and I can't find it in me to regret it . . . I guess what I'm trying to say is that we never meant it to happen, but I don't wish it didn't."

"That's OK." Sam said. "I can understand why you might have thought I'd be mad, but I'm not. I was only about six months older than you are when I lost my virginity."

Tally looked at her disbelief. "Really? You?"

Sam smirked. "The rules aren't quite as strict on Earth. Your dad had his first time when he was only just sixteen." Tally's mouth dropped open in amazement, forgetting momentarily that she had yet to tell her mother the worst part.

"See? That wasn't so bad was it?" Sam smiled at Tally, thinking she'd got to the bottom of her daughter's distress. Tally, however, hung her head.

"There's more. I'm still in trouble, and you might still get mad at me." Tally said quietly and shakily.

"What?" Sam frowned, wondering what in the world could still be wrong.

"You know I . . . made love to him once?" She started.

"Yes." Sam said slowly, worried about where this could be leading.

"I . . ." Tally faltered. Suddenly she was on the verge of tears again.

"Sweetheart, what is it?" Sam asked her, putting her arm back round her daughter.

"We . . . I wasn't thinking about the consequences." She said quickly. She half prayed and half dreaded that her mother would pick up on the implied meaning.

"Consequences? Of having sex?" Sam needed to make sure she understood. Tally nodded, still unable to meet Sam's eye.

Sam's mind was suddenly full of panic. At the back of her mind she knew what Tally was trying to say, but she tried to ignore it. There had to be another explanation. She took a deep breath.

"Just to clarify a little, by consequences, are you talking about how Jase's family would react?" She already knew the answer, but she had to know for sure.

"No."

That simple answer was all Sam needed.

"Tally?" Sam said her name quietly, her voice full of concern. Tally took a deep, shuddering breath.

"You're pregnant, aren't you?" Sam continued. Tally's bottom lip trembled. Without a second thought Sam pulled her daughter close again, her head resting against Sam's heart as she started to cry uncontrollably.

When Tally had got control of herself again, she didn't pull away. She couldn't stand to look up and see the disappointment on her mother's face. Sam started stroking her daughter's soft blonde hair, her cheek resting against the seventeen year-old's head. She had her eyes closed, a worried expression on her face as she thought about her little girl's future.

"It's gonna be okay, Taz." She said softly. Tally's face scrunched up again as she fought back a sob.

"I'm sorry." She managed to whisper.

"I'm not angry. And I promise you – whatever happens, I'll be here for you. Okay?" She moved her head away slightly to look at Tally, who lifted her head up to meet her gaze. They shared a tender look for a moment, before Tally said croakily: "Okay."

Sam smiled, and Tally rested her head back against her mother's bosom.

"Okay."

* * *

Kennedy prowled through the corridors of the Gemini. He had a feeling the stubborn officers and their precious daughter weren't going to co-operate. He couldn't allow that. In seventeen years of service he had never once failed to carry out an order. That wasn't going to change. It couldn't change. He wasn't going to let a failure blemish his record. No. He had to do something. He had to make sure they came with him. Even if they were reluctant. Even if they said no.

He rushed through the ship to the bridge, and pulled up the ship's sensors. He saw the high energy emissions coming from 40 miles outside Amdra, indicating the source of the unnatural field around the planet. Quickly he directed a stream of data directly at the device. _That should do it_, he thought.

* * *

_I hope the end redeemed the rest of it a little. Please R&R! Reviews keep my muse happy, and a happy muse means better writing ..._

_Honestly though, I love getting feedback, especially if you have some constructive criticism for me._

_Beka_


	9. Decisions

_**Found - part 9**_

_Hey guys. I'm very sorry, but this might be the last installment for a couple of weeks, as I'm about to jet off to France for a holiday, avec no internet connection. So, enjoy this chapter, and I'll post something as soon as I get back, on August 13th._

* * *

Sam, Jack, Tally and Jase were crowded in Sam and Jack's bedroom. They were there for privacy. Sam and Tally had just told Jack about Tally's pregnancy. He was torn between fury at Jase for putting his daughter through this, fear for Tally's future, and a tiny spark of excitement at the thought of being a grandfather. It was a very confusing state to be in.

"You'd better stand by her." He growled at Jase.

"Of course I will. I love her, I'd do anything for her, and she won't have to raise our baby alone." Jase put his arm round Tally, who smiled up at him. Her eyes were full of gratitude and relief. Jase wouldn't leave her, and her parents weren't going to desert her. Even her father wasn't angry with _her_. He was just worried about her. With her parents on her side, she felt liberated. She wasn't alone, and if anyone could make things okay, they could.

"Now we just have to figure out how to break the news to the villagers." Sam sighed. She knew that was going to be tough.

"Maybe if I married Tally first – at least that way we can save her honor." Jase suggested.

"You're kidding, right?" Tally scoffed. "They'd just hate me for contaminating the _royal_ blood." She didn't worry about insulting the village's view of Jase's bloodline in front of him. He hated being treated differently to the other villagers, and spent half his life arguing that being descended from Amdra didn't make him any more important than anyone else. Amdra was the hero – not him.

"That's not an option anyway. You have to be eighteen to marry, and Tally's still seventeen." Jack pointed out.

"And by the time I am eighteen in four months, I'll be showing." She patted her stomach gently.

"What would happen if we just told everyone now?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. My family would almost certainly disown me, and Tally would be publicly shamed, or worse, banished from the village. It would probably affect you and Jack as well." Jase answered her.

"I don't see that we have any other choice. Like it or not, sooner or later people are going to notice that I'm pregnant." Tally winced, still not used to the idea. Up till that point she'd been in a kind of sub-conscious denial, not wanting to face the inevitable future.

"What about Earth?" Jack asked after a pause. Three pairs of eyes stared at him, not following his thoughts.

"We've decided to go back to Earth anyway, because it's our best chance of finding Luke." He started. "And even if we hadn't already decided that, if we're facing exile from the village, then we'd need somewhere to go. You're unlikely to find a village willing to take in a banished, unmarried, pregnant seventeen year-old, and an eighteen year-old boy who was disowned for bringing shame to the name of Amdra. The obvious solution is for us all to go back to Earth." Jase and Tally looked down, faces solemn. Sam put a hand on Jack's arm.

"Jack, I know it makes sense, but it's not that easy. This is Jase's home. It's Tally's home. They might not want to leave." She reasoned quietly.

There was a poignant pause while everyone considered the ramifications.

"Tally . . ." Jase started uncertainly.

"It's okay. I know you don't want to leave, and that's perfectly understandable. We'll find a village who'll take us in." Tally reassured him.

"No, that's not good enough. We have a way out here. If Earth can take care of you, of us, then I wouldn't be doing the right thing for you if I asked you to stay."

Tally just looked at him for a long moment. "You mean that? You'd really leave your home, your _planet_, for me?"

"For us. And don't forget, Luke was my friend too."

Tally nodded. What she regretted most about her pregnancy was that it was likely she wouldn't be able to help find her little brother.

Sam and Jack watched the exchange in worried silence, reluctant to interrupt. This was a decision only Tally and Jase could make. The young couple had paused, and were watching each other, trying to see in the other's eyes that this was the right move. Eventually, Tally sighed and turned to her parents.

"If we do this – if we go to Earth – what exactly will happen?" She asked nervously.

Jack glanced at Sam before answering. "I imagine that at first, you'll be confined to the SGC, until you've learnt enough about Earth to safely mix with the population. Then, I guess they'll let you go, and live like any other couple in the US, as soon as Tally's eighteen."

"What about the baby? We'll be allowed to keep it?" Jase asked.

"Yes, of course!" Sam cut in, alarmed that they'd assume differently. "You'll have the same rights that everyone else on the planet has."

"In absolute truth, we won't know exactly what the arrangements will be until we get back there. I don't expect either Sam or I still have houses, or anything else. That means we'll all be living on base for a while, until we can find ourselves somewhere to live."

"And you'd better live with us for the first few months at least, so you can get the hang of life on Earth." Sam cut in.

"And of course you will really appreciate the extra childcare help, once the baby gets here."

They both paused, trying to gauge the younger couple's reaction to all this. Tally and Jase shared another long look.

"I guess it really is the best solution." Jase said. Tally smiled slightly and nodded.

"Yeah."

_FLASH_

Kennedy grinned lopsidedly. The security camera showed exactly what he wanted – three very surprised looking people in a holding cell.

* * *

_Ta da! I'm not completely happy with this chapter, because I think it's underplaying their desire to find Luke. I'm also considering completely changing the direction I had in mind for the story when I wrote it 2 years ago (at which point Luke didn't exist - he was a recent addition). The result being I MIGHT change this chapter for something else when I get back, depending on what I decide in those long 2 weeks in the land of the Francais. Either way, more will be posted when I get back, and PLEASE still review, because I'd like to know what you think of this chapter (i.e. whether it was clear that when Jack and Sam gave Tally and Jase the option of staying, they still would have left to find Luke themselves.)_

_Beka_

_Au revoir!_


	10. Kidnapped

_**Found - part 10**_

_Hey guys, sorry it's a few days later than I promised - had a bit of a crisis when I got back from my holiday in France. Oh well, c'est la vie, que sera sera, etc. Enjoy!_

* * *

Kennedy grinned lopsidedly. The security camera showed exactly what he wanted – three very surprised looking people in a holding cell. He activated the transporters again, and with a flash Daniel, Haley and Teal'c were standing with him on the bridge. They looked round at him in surprise.

"Time to leave, folks." He grinned at them. They all started in shock. Except Teal'c, who wasn't prone to displaying shock at all.

"But how did you get round the magnetic field?" Haley asked, confused.

"I turned off the device causing it."

"We agreed not to do that!" Haley said furiously. "We don't know how it will affect the planet!"

"Who cares? We're leaving."

"But – but what about Jack and Sam, and Tally?" Daniel stuttered.

"They're on board and ready to head home."

The three of them exchanged uneasy looks. "They're on board?" Haley clarified.

"Yes."

"I thought they weren't sure they wanted to go home." Daniel asked suspiciously.

"They changed their minds." Kennedy said simply, turning back to the security cameras.

Teal'c moved away and beckoned the others to follow. "I do not have a good feeling about this." He whispered. "Major Kennedy is acting strangely, and while it is possible that Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter may have changed their minds, they would not have consented to leave without time to say goodbye. Tally in particular would have objected to that." He didn't add that he was surprised that the father of Tally's baby would probably have wanted to join the family of three. Daniel frowned.

"You think it's even possible they changed their minds? I thought they'd decided to stay." He said, confused.

Teal'c hesitated, unsure of how much to reveal. "There are more factors pertinent to their decision than they have revealed to us. Tally informed me that her parents were beginning to favor the option of returning with us."

"Why?"

Teal'c hesitated again. "I would rather not say without their consent. They are not even aware that I know; it was Tally who told me."

Daniel and Haley nodded.

"So what do we do?" Haley asked.

"Go see them." Daniel answered. "They can tell us whether or not they want this."

Teal'c bowed his head in agreement and turned back to Kennedy. "We wish to speak with O'Neill. Where can he be found?"

Kennedy's grin slipped for a moment, before he recovered it. "They're resting. It's a long trip and they've been up all night discussing their options." He lied. He looked directly at them. "I need you three to go check we have enough supplies to feed the kid as well. Now." He ordered.

Teal'c looked stony-faced at Kennedy a moment, then turned and left, a bewildered Daniel and Haley following him.

* * *

Sam, Jack and Tally looked around in horror.

"That bastard!" Jack yelled, kicking the door in anger.

"Mom?" Tally asked quietly, hoping against hope that this didn't mean what she thought it meant.

Sam was staring around the cell in shock. "That creep . . ." she whispered, "He can't do this. He can't."

"Mom, please?" Tally whispered. Sam hugged her close and looked at Jack, communicating without words.

"Sam, I need you to get this door open." He said, indicating the panel on the wall. Sam nodded, instantly reverting back to the position of 2IC that she used to know so well. Jack took Sam's place, putting an arm around Tally protectively. She buried her face in his chest and whispered, almost imperceptibly, 'Jase . . .'.

Sam pried the cover off of the wall panel, and surveyed the interior critically. She couldn't help feeling she was way out of her league with this one.

"I've never seen anything like this before . . ." she whispered, half in wonder, half in disappointment. Jack scowled.

"Can you get it to open or not?"

"I don't know, maybe, just give me a bit of time."

"Time is the one thing we do not have, Sam." He barked. Sam glared at him.

"I'm just being honest, _sir_, I know the stakes here."

"Stop it!" Tally exclaimed in frustration. "This isn't helping!"

A heartsick look crossed Sam's face as she looked at her daughter, then she wordlessly looked back at the panel. Jack started pacing the room restlessly.

* * *

_What did you think? More will follow, asap. Please press the sweet little review button and let me know how I'm doing!_

_Beka_


	11. Luke's story

**_Found - part 11_**

_After looking at my stats I realised that last chapter was unusually short, so I thought I'd get this one posted a little earlier to make up for it. Enjoy!_

* * *

Jase leapt in the air in shock as Tally and her parents vanished in a flash of light.

"Tally!" He yelled, looking around wildly, half expecting them to reappear in the room. He stumbled outside and rushed frantically through the village, calling for Tally, Sam or Jack. The villagers gathered outside, watching in alarm as the young man darted around as though mad. Jase reached Karelle, and skidded to a stop.

"Karelle, Tally . . . Sam and Jack . . ." he panted. The wizened old woman gazed at him in concern.

"Slow down, child. What is it?"

"They're gone!" Jase exclaimed. "They just . . . vanished!"

Karelle considered him. She knew what this meant – she had seen the outsiders beam to and from the surface in a flash of white light. "They have gone to the Tau'ri ship." She told him. "It is nothing to be concerned with."

"But – but they were taken! I was just talking to them, and then they were gone!" He spluttered.

Karelle frowned. "You were talking to them? They did not go to the special area in the woods?"

"No! They didn't know they were going to be transported! They were taken without warning!"

Karelle's frown deepened. This _was_ a problem. She knew little of the outsiders, except that three of them were friends of Sam and Jack, and one wasn't. The one was the leader. He also wished to take them back to the Tau'ri.

"You are sure?" Karelle asked Jase.

"Positive. They had no idea."

Karelle sighed. "Then the leader of the outsiders is most likely taking them back to the Tau'ri against their will. I am sorry, Jase. I know what Tally means to you, but there is nothing we can do."

Jase stared at her for a long moment, shocked, not only at what she had said, but that she knew about his relationship with Tally. "But – there must be something." He protested quietly.

"I am sorry." Karelle repeated. Jase sat down heavily. He couldn't believe there was nothing to be done.

"She's carrying my child." He whispered. Karelle looked down at him in shock.

"What did you say?"

"Tally is pregnant." Jase repeated.

* * *

Once out of the bridge, Teal'c strode purposefully onwards, Daniel and Haley scurrying after him.

"Where are we going?" Daniel asked.

"The guest quarters." Teal'c responded, keeping perfect pace.

They moved quickly through the halls to the elevator, and reached deck 5. Teal'c got out of the elevator and walked straight to the room he knew had been prepared for the O'Neill's. He knocked. On hearing no response he opened the door. The room was empty.

"We should check the other rooms." Haley suggested.

They opened every door. The family was nowhere to be seen.

"What now?" Daniel asked. "Are they even on the ship?"

"I believe so. Major Kennedy would not leave without them." Teal'c said.

"And he sure looked happy when he said he'd got them." Haley said uneasily.

"So where . . ."

They considered the possibilities for a moment.

"Holding cell." They said in unison.

* * *

Sam groaned and kicked the wall in frustration. "Why won't you open?!"

Tally was sitting on the floor with her eyes closed. Jack was leaning against the wall next to her. He looked up at Sam, silently asking for a status report. She sighed and leaned against the door.

"I don't know, Jack. I just can't get it to work. I've never seen anything like this."

Jack sighed and looked at Tally, who was resting her head on her knees, eyes still closed. "We have to get out of this cell." He whispered. Sam felt like crying. "I know." She whispered back, and gazed despairingly at the panel.

It lit up.

Sam jumped upright in surprise, only to leap backwards when the door suddenly opened.

On the threshold stood Daniel, grinning. "Found them!" He called to the other two, who were checking the other cells.

Tally jumped up. "Daniel! I could kiss you! If I weren't already pregnant with another man's child." She added. Daniel visibly jumped in surprise. "What?"

"Teal'c! Daniel!" Jack exclaimed, patting his friends on the back. "Nicely done."

"I'm sorry about this Colonel, Major." Haley apologized. "I swear I didn't know he was going to do this."

"It's okay." Sam assured her, one arm around Tally. "I know you wouldn't have taken us against our will."

"So you decided to stay?" Daniel asked.

"We didn't get the chance to decide anything!" Jack retorted angrily. "That little rat-bastard just scooped us up out of our living room! We might have come of our own accord if he'd just waited!"

"Why? I thought you were happy here?"

Sam and Jack had a silent conversation over the top of Tally's head. "We might as well tell them." Sam said eventually.

"We decided to go back to Earth for two reasons." Jack started, rubbing his forehead tiredly. "One was Tally. As you no doubt just heard, she's pregnant, and the villagers are unlikely to be too happy with that, so we figured we'd probably end up taking her and Jase, the baby's father, back to Earth so that they could have a decent life together, rather than be exiled or publicly shamed."

Tally looked down at her hands, not wanting to see the reactions of her father's friends.

"The main reason though, is our son, Luke." Sam continued. Daniel gawped at her.

"Your … your _son?_"

"Luke _Daniel_ O'Neill." Jack smiled at him.

"He was kidnapped when the goa'uld attacked." Sam said, her voice strained with the still-fresh pain of losing her child.

"He was fifteen, so he was supposed to be hiding in a safe place with the children, the sick and the elderly." Tally told them quietly. "But he wanted to fight, with the rest of us."

"He's too much like me for his own good." Jack added soberly.

"He got caught, but we didn't realize until after Mom had set the mothership's computer to fly away on autopilot. We all just assumed that he was safe with the other kids. We were watching the jaffa run for the ship as the engines fired up, when we saw him, being carried over one of their shoulders unconscious." Tally told them.

"I was closest. I ran after them, but I couldn't catch up. They shut the doors and … and took off." Sam finished.

Daniel put a hand on Sam's shoulder supportively, and he and Teal'c exchanged saddened looks.

"We have to get back to Amdra." Jack said, breaking the silence. "We shouldn't leave Jase behind, and we can't leave the planet with its electro-magnetic field turned off."

"That may prove difficult." Teal'c told him. "Major Kennedy is in control of the ship, and he obviously wishes to return you to Earth."

"So? Six of us – one of him. I don't see a problem." Jack argued.

"He is on the bridge. He has access to all kinds of security systems that would make us unable to reach him."

"We don't _need_ to reach him. We need to turn this boat around!" Jack said, exasperated.

"There's got to be a way of getting to him. He can't keep an eye on all of us at once." Sam reasoned.

"Not if we split up . . ." Haley added thoughtfully.

"How many entrances are there to the bridge?" Jack asked.

"Four." Haley replied.

Jack waved his hand for Haley to elaborate.

"There's the main entrance from the elevator, there's a door adjoining to the main office of whoever's in command, there's a door to the corridor outside, and . . . I don't see a fourth." Daniel filled Jack in, finishing on a frown.

"There is an access tube." Teal'c supplied.

"Alright, here's the plan." Jack began. "We split into pairs. Teal'c, you and Tally approach from the corridor. Daniel and Sam take the access tube. Haley and I will try the elevator. Hopefully, we'll all meet at the bridge. Teal'c, is there a weapons locker around anywhere?"

"One level up." The jaffa replied.

"Then up we go."

* * *

_Lots of Lukey exposition in this chappie ... really anxious to know what you think of this one. Please review and let me know!_

_Beka :-)_


	12. Operation: Get Kennedy

**_Found - part 12_**

_Atlantis ... cancelled ... I'm in shock._

* * *

Karelle walked briskly through the woods, Jase jogging in her wake.

"Where exactly are we going?" He asked.

"To try and save your child from being fatherless." Karelle responded.

"How?"

Karelle didn't answer immediately, but quickened her pace and started to navigate down a hill.

"If Jack, Sam and Tally were transported without having to go to the woods, I can only assume the, uh . . . _magnet field_ Sam told us of has been removed. And if that's true, then their ship should work."

"Their ship? You mean the F-302?"

"I do."

"You intend to fly it?" Jase asked incredulously. Karelle shot him a sly sideways look. "Not I."

"Me?" Jase blanched. "What makes you think _I _can fly it?"

"Did Tally not teach you what her mother taught her?"

"Well, yes, but that's a little different to actually flying it."

"Do you feel confident enough to try? For the sake of your child?"

Jase looked at her for a long moment. "Yes." He said with quiet resolve.

Karelle started walking again.

"You know we're going in the wrong direction?" Jase called out to her.

She stopped. "I am?"

He grinned. "Follow me."

* * *

After arming themselves with zats from the weapons locker, the group of six on the Gemini split into pairs, and headed for the bridge.

Jack and Haley got in the elevator together, and Haley said 'Bridge'.

Jack gave her a surprised look. "That's it?" He asked.

Haley frowned, confused. "What's it?"

"You just say 'Bridge'? Like in Star Trek?"

Haley grinned. "Pretty neat, huh?"

"Yeah." Jack smiled. "Neat."

Suddenly the lights went out, and they felt the elevator stop moving.

"Ah, Haley?" Jack started.

"It's not supposed to do this." Haley answered, looking concernedly at the control panel on the wall.

"Right." Jack sighed and leant back against the wall. "I'm guessing Kennedy?"

"Probably." Haley answered. "If it is, there's nothing I can do from here."

"And if it's not Kennedy?"

Haley paused. "Chances are there's nothing I can do from here."

Jack sighed again. "Right."

* * *

As they headed through the ship's corridors, Daniel kept taking furtive sideways glances at Sam. Something was bothering him, but he wasn't sure if now was the time to bring it up. It was a conversation that was likely to get her upset.

"What, Daniel?" Sam said, losing her patience with her friend's obvious indecision, wanting him to just come out and say whatever it was that was on his mind.

"That obvious?" He asked sheepishly. Sam said nothing, so he sighed and relented.

"I was wondering why you waited so long to tell us about Luke. If it had been my son missing …"

"You would have told us immediately and insisted we go awol with the Gemini, to go flying round the galaxy looking for him." Sam said in a strained voice.

"I … well I …. I meant …" Daniel stuttered.

Sam looked at him tiredly. "There's more to this than we've told you."

Daniel blinked. "Oh?"

"We can't get into it now, there isn't time, but I promise, as soon as we have control of the ship, I'll tell you everything."

* * *

Teal'c made his way stealthily along the corridors, heading for the main bridge. Tally followed close behind him, matching his movements as he darted passed each security camera.

"How likely is it that Kennedy will see us?" Tally whispered.

"It is likely. He will be watching for us, I am sure of it." Teal'c responded.

"Of course he will." Tally sighed. Teal'c smiled, and whispered back, after darting past another camera:

"You have picked up many of your father's mannerisms."

Tally gave him a look. "I'm not sure whether to thank you or hit you for that comment."

"It was not meant as an insult." Teal'c assured her.

They reached the door of the bridge, and Teal'c held up his hand to stop Tally. He signaled to her that upon entering, they would go in two different directions, and that he would attempt to shoot Kennedy with his zat. Tally nodded. Teal'c tried the door. It made an odd electrical noise, but didn't open.

"I take it this isn't good." Tally whispered. Teal'c inclined his head.

"Major Kennedy has locked the door."

"Can you open it?" Tally asked.

"No."

They stood in silence for a moment. "So what now?" Tally asked. Teal'c thought for a moment.

"We could attempt to break into the adjoining office. It is unlikely Major Kennedy will have locked that door."

"Okay then. Sounds like a plan."

They moved back off down the corridor.

* * *

Sam and Daniel crawled along the access tube, which was at ceiling level with the main bridge. They were moving slowly so as to make as little noise as possible, for fear that Kennedy would hear them.

"God, I've missed this." Sam muttered under her breath. Daniel looked back at her with a quizzical look.

"The action. I've never been a 'stay-at-home-mom' type. The peace and quiet has been driving me crazy."

Daniel chuckled. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me." He smiled to himself. He had really missed Sam. There really was no one quite like her.

"This is it." He whispered back to Sam over his shoulder. "We're about to enter the space above the bridge." He and Sam slowly lowered themselves onto their stomachs, so as to make as little noise as possible as they moved above Kennedy.

"Here goes nothing."

* * *

_Please review! It will help heal the Atlantis-shaped hole in my heart! _

_Beka_


	13. Closing in

**_Found - part 13_**

_Suffering an extreme case of writers block - Aaaaaaa! Reading lots of fanfic to try and regain lost inspiration (no pun intended;-P ) In the meantime enjoy this chapter! The next chapter is written, so I'll probably post that later this week, and after that it's over to my muse to get its butt in gear!_

* * *

Karelle and Jase found the long-lost ship after a thirty minute trek through the woodlands.

"There!" Jase yelled as he caught a glimpse of the grey outer armor of the ship. The 302 sat facing away from them, its nose pointed towards a long, flat runway of dry earth. After losing Luke, Sam had returned the 302 to serviceable conditions, and the old ex-Air Force officers had turned off the planet's electro-magnetic field, built the runway, and flown after the ship that had taken their son. They had flown for three days, but eventually had to turn back. The ship had obviously either broken free of the autopiloted route Sam had set it on, or … but the 'or' was too terrible to contemplate. They resolutely ignored the debris field as they passed it again on their way back to Amdra.

What this meant now though, was that, with Kennedy having turned off the magnetic field again, the 302 could once again be used.

"Will it fly?" Karelle asked anxiously.

"Let's find out." Jase said, pressing a control to open the hatch. He jumped into the front seat and looked over the controls, finding the one Tally had shown him. He flicked several switches and the '302 whirred to life.

"Well done!" Karelle exclaimed, impressed. "Now you can fly it?"

"I believe so." He answered, looking up into the sky. "Tally once told me that Earth was in the direction of the Kiroti Star, in mid-season. It is almost mid-season now, so I think if I follow that direction, I may yet catch the ship."

"You mean 'we'. 'We' may catch the ship." Karelle corrected him.

"Karelle! You cannot come! You are of too much importance to Amdra! And there is no guarantee you could return!" Jase protested.

"What is that expression Jack O'Neill used to use? Two heads are better than one?"

"I do not believe that applies to this situation." Jase retorted skeptically.

"Come on, Jase. Give an old woman some adventure before she dies. You need all the help you can get." Karelle argued. Jase considered her unhappily for a moment, not at all sure this was wise, but he could not refuse her.

"Very well. But on your head be it."

Karelle grinned, and with Jase's help, climbed up into the small craft.

"Let's go."

* * *

Haley gave up fiddling with the control panel in the elevator – it was quite clearly devoid of power. She leant back against the wall with Jack.

"So." She started conversationally.

"So." Jack offered.

There was an awkward pause.

"So . . . uh . . . Tally's pregnant?" Haley asked cautiously. Jack ducked his head for a minute, then squinted.

"Yeah."

"So . . . you're going to be a granddad." She continued. Jack frowned at her.

"I guess."

There was another rather awkward pause.

"_Colonel O'Neill, Major Haley, I _sincerely _apologize for the lack of power I seem to have caused in your elevator, and would like to inform you that it will be restored just as soon as we're all back where we're supposed to be. On Earth._" Kennedy's voice came over the intercom, sounding extremely smug.

"How do we reply to that?" Jack asked angrily.

"Press and hold this." Haley answered, indicating a button on the wall.

"Kennedy, you have taken us prisoner against our will! I _order_ you to turn this ship around and take us back!" Jack yelled at the button he was pressing.

"_I do not feel obliged to obey._" Kennedy responded, even more smugly.

"You little son of a bitch! If you don't obey my order, I'll make sure you're court-martialed the second we get to the SGC!"

"_It's all very well threatening me, O'Neill. But I think they'll take my side. Particularly the President._"

"What the hell does that mean!?"

"_I'm escorting three air force officers back to Earth for court-martial._"

Haley felt her stomach roll. She'd known that helping Daniel and Teal'c would mean disobeying Kennedy's orders, but she still didn't relish the idea of losing everything she'd worked so hard to achieve.

"You haven't got a thing over us!" Jack yelled. "We're innocent!"

"_Really. Last I checked, you and Major Carter were guilty of breaking regulations. Tally is the evidence. Also, Major Haley disobeyed my orders."_

There was a shocked pause, during which Jack's face went from white, to grey, to bright red in fury.

"You'll never get away with this, Kennedy!" He yelled. There was no reply. Jack yelled again and kicked the door, while Haley watched nervously.

* * *

Teal'c had found a blow-torch, and was slowly burning a hole in the wall of the office adjoining the bridge. Tally watched anxiously, worried about the amount of noise they were making.

"There's no way he's not hearing this!" She hissed at Teal'c.

"The walls are all insulated and largely sound-proof. It is unlikely that he can." He replied, his voice muffled by the welding mask he was wearing.

It was slow work. Tally kept pacing in the small area they could inhabit while staying off the cameras. If it took too much longer to stop the ship, she was worried they wouldn't be able to find their way back.

* * *

Jase flew the ship towards the Kiroti Star, pushing the engines as fast as they'd go. Karelle sat behind him, frozen to her seat in terror and awe. They were in space, among the stars! The mere thought of it denied reason, or credibility.

Jase too felt a certain wonder at being above the sky, but kept his mind focused, as he had been taught when in combat training. There would be time for reflection, and amazement. Now, he had to get to Tally. He only hoped he could catch them.

* * *

Daniel and Sam slid slowly along the smooth surface of the access tube, barely breathing for fear of Kennedy hearing them. Daniel could see the hatch through which they would drop into the bridge, mere feet away. He stopped suddenly, thinking he'd heard something. Sam went still behind him, listening.

Daniel looked back over his shoulder at Sam. He mouthed '_Did you hear that?_' to her. She frowned and shook her head. Daniel nodded and started forward again.

* * *

The panel of wall had made a loud clunk as it fell to the floor, having been melted away from the wall by Teal'c's blow torch. Tally winced and stood still, listening for evidence that Kennedy had heard it. Teal'c did likewise, then, satisfied that they were as yet undetected, he climbed through the opening.

Tally followed cautiously, keeping her ears open for the slightest sound. She could see the door to the bridge, where Kennedy was, presumably, waiting. Teal'c moved silently towards it, and pressed his ear to it, listening. After a moment he beckoned Tally to join him.

Still silently, Teal'c communicated to Tally again, that he would go left, and she right, and he would attempt to shoot Kennedy with his zat. Tally nodded, and Teal'c positioned his hand over the button that would open the door.

* * *

Daniel pulled himself to the other side of the hatch, and crouched down, facing Sam. They communicated silently, as they'd learnt to do all those years ago as SG-1. Sam took command, indicating that she would drop through the hatch first, and try to take Kennedy out with her zat. Then Daniel would follow. If necessary, they would then go in two different directions, to enable at least one of them a clear shot.

Daniel took hold of the handles, ready to lift the hatch and allow Sam to drop through it in one swift motion. He gave Sam one last smile and mouthed _good luck_. She smiled back, and nodded at him to do it. He lifted the hatch.

* * *

_Please please please review! Need all the comments/suggestions etc that I can get, since I've taken this story in a completely different direction to the original version of it which I wrote several years ago. Should the group go back to Earth first, or just take the Gemini and fly off to look for Luke?? Anxious for your opinions._

_Your humble writer,  
Beka! :-D_


	14. One nil to team O'Neill!

**_Found - part 14_**

_Moving into my new house tomorrow (aaaaaa!). Unfortunately, internet access will not commence until my roommates move in, which will be the 23rd, so this chapter may have to last you awhile. Have thought a lot about where this story is going (almost tempted to start again from scratch, but I realise that may annoy/anger a lot of you who have been following since the beginning, and so i won't!), and am excited about continuing. This chapter marks the end of the material I had already written, given the changes which I've made since beginning to post - like Luke - which make the original ending I'd written completely unsuitable. Can't say for sure when next chapter will be up. Hopefully will have it up by Friday 26th. I am so sorry for keeping you waiting so long - believe me, i know how annoying it is. Please review anyway, despite my terrible writer's etiquette!  
_

* * *

Jase laughed out loud when they came in sight of the Earth ship. It was moving surprisingly slowly, and it had not taken himself and Karelle long to catch it.

"Why does it move so slowly?" Karelle asked. Jase shrugged.

"Maybe Kennedy's having trouble containing the others." He offered.

They approached cautiously. "What now? How do we dock? What happens if Major Kennedy sees us?" Karelle asked. Jase thought about it.

"We dock by guiding our ship to that huge doorway in the side of their ship. Do you see it?"

Karelle nodded.

"The doors should open automatically in response to the signal I send it."

"Then what?" Karelle asked.

"Then, we go and try to find Jack, Sam and the others. The only problem we may have, is if Kennedy sees us approaching. He may fire on us, or jump to hyperspace. Either way we're in trouble."

"How can we be sure he doesn't see us?"

"We can't. We'll just have to hope." Jase answered grimly. Karelle nodded resolutely.

"Let's do it."

Jase slowly and carefully guided the small craft alongside the docking port, and sent his signal. There was a moment in which he and Karelle held their breath, as nothing happened, before the huge door slid slowly open, revealing a one-way force-shield that would admit them. Jase flew the ship through the doorway, and set down very slowly, and very clumsily due to his lack of experience, in the docking bay. The doors slid shut behind them. Jase let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding.

"We did it." Karelle whispered, shocked. "You did it." She corrected herself.

Jase grinned despite himself, full of renewed energy at this first success.

"Okay. We're aboard. Now we have to find the others." He opened the compartment that he and the old widow sat in, and helped her out. They climbed down to the ground together, and hurried towards the door. It slid open automatically, setting off an alarm. Red lights flashed everywhere, along with a deafening siren.

"I think we've been detected." Karelle said. They looked left and right down the corridor.

"Which way?"

Jase gulped, and made a decision. "This way." He said, starting left down the corridor, hoping it was the right way.

* * *

Teal'c threw the door open and leaped into the bridge, just as Sam dropped from the ceiling hatch. They caught each other by surprise, but quickly recovered and Teal'c aimed a shot at Kennedy, just as the sirens went off. Kennedy was taken completely by surprise by Teal'c, Sam and the siren, but was unaffected by the direct hit from the zat.

Tally was circling round the other way to Teal'c, and Daniel had dropped from the ceiling, but all four of them stopped when Kennedy failed to collapse after the shot form the zat.

"What the –" Sam started. Kennedy smirked and pulled back his jacket to reveal a small device attached to his shirt. Sam frowned and looked to Daniel and Teal'c for an explanation.

"A personal shield." Teal'c said.

"A what?" Tally asked. Kennedy smirked again.

"Now what do you plan on doing?" He taunted them. "You can't shoot me, and I doubt any of you would be willing to risk court-martial back on Earth for injuring a superior officer."

All four of them gave Kennedy a look of deepest loathing, and advanced.

"I cannot be court-martialed." Teal'c stated.

"Me neither." Daniel said.

"I've been gone too long to merit a proper court-martial." Sam said.

"And I've never even been to Earth, so they sure as hell can't court-martial me." Added Tally.

Kennedy's jaw went slack, as the team of four all advanced on him from different directions. He span round, sizing them up, trying to figure out which of them would be the easiest to take down. He knew he didn't stand a chance with Teal'c. Daniel too had become surprisingly able at defending himself, largely due to Teal'c. Tally, he knew from experience was a bad move. But Sam . . . she was over fifty years old, and he hadn't seen any evidence to suggest she was as deadly as her daughter.

He positioned himself facing Daniel, strategically pretending he was going to pick him to fight. Then he lunged left straight at Sam. In seconds he was on the floor, looking up at Sam's scathing expression. "Bad move, Kennedy. Very bad move."

Teal'c approached, and between him and Sam they restrained the struggling Major.

"Daniel, can you turn us around?" Sam asked. Daniel was peering at the ship's navigation controls.

"Uh . . . I think so."

"And turn that damn racket off!" Kennedy barked from the floor. Sam kicked him, then nodded to Daniel to turn off the siren.

"Oh my god!" Tally suddenly exclaimed. She was leaning over another console, the one which was flagging up security cameras.

"What?" Daniel jogged over to her. Tally indicated for him to wait for the right camera to show again, and they waited in silence for a few seconds before Daniel hit the freeze button on the screen. The image clearly showed a young man and an old woman making their way stealthily through the corridors.

"Jase!" Tally breathed.

Sam shot a look in her direction. "What?" She checked Teal'c had a secure hold on Kennedy, and went to join the others. She saw Jase and Karelle, and gasped. "He must have transported them aboard too."

"But why?" Daniel asked. Tally said nothing, but dashed out the door.

"Tally!" Sam called after her. "Daniel, go after her, she doesn't know where she's going." Sam said to Daniel. He nodded and left.

Teal'c pressed Kennedy against the wall of the bridge. "Why did you kidnap them as well? They have no value to you."

Kennedy, his face red from lack of oxygen, spluttered: "I didn't."

"Don't lie to us, you ass hole, there's no way they got aboard on their own." Sam sneered at him.

Kennedy's face was aghast. "I swear – I didn't – it wasn't me." Sam looked uncertainly at Teal'c – she didn't know Kennedy well enough to tell when he was lying.

Teal'c looked intently at Kennedy, then released his pressure on Kennedy's windpipe a little.

"I believe he is telling the truth." He said to Sam. Sam shook her head.

"But then how did they get aboard? I was on that planet for eighteen years and I can promise you we don't have transporting technology."

Teal'c glared thoughtfully at his hostage. "I do not know."

* * *

Tally sprinted down the corridors, heading to the elevator she'd seen on her way to the bridge with Teal'c. There'd been a level number on that video screen – 8. She was going to get in an elevator, go to level 8, and then search the whole deck if she had to.

Daniel careened down the hallway after her, only to stop short when he rounded a corner, to find Tally standing still with her ear pressed against the door to the elevator. She turned when she heard him approach.

"The door won't open, but I think I hear voices inside." She whispered to him. Daniel strode forward and pressed his own ear against it, then he yelled through it: "Jack! Haley!"

They heard muffled yells come back to them. "Daniel? Is that you?" Get us out of here!" Jack was calling.

Daniel found the control panel for the door, removed the cover, and touched two wires together. It was the manual override for the security lock. The door hissed as it slid open.

"Thank you!" Jack said extremely gratefully. "It was getting a little claustrophobic in there."

"We've captured that creep on the bridge, Dad, but Jase and Karelle are on board." Tally told him, pushing him and Haley back into the elevator.

"What?" Jack said, shocked.

"Level Eight." Daniel said clearly to the elevator. It whirred as it began to move down.

"Level eight? Isn't that the docking bay?" Haley asked.

"Yeah it is." Daniel answered thoughtfully. "There aren't ships in Amdra are there?" Daniel asked Jack skeptically.

Jack shook his head bemusedly. "Not that I've ever heard of."

"Nor me. Besides the F-302, of course." Confirmed Tally.

The three Tau'ri gave her a funny look. Haley looked skeptically at Jack. "That wouldn't still fly after all these years, would it sir?"

"It will, but only if the magnetic field is turned off, and no one's been in the Ancient lab since you guys arrived." Jack said impatiently.

"Kennedy deactivated it to beam us aboard." Daniel told him. There was a moment of silence in which the elevator doors hissed open.

"But even so, Jase and Karelle can't fly it." Jack continued.

"Jase might." Tally said, her eyes shining. "I taught him what Mom taught me. He could fly it as well as I could."

"_You've_ never flown it." Jack argued.

Tally shrugged. "Anyone got a better theory?"

More silence.

"Right, we'll split up. Haley and Tally go that way, Daniel and I will go this way." Jack indicated two different directions, and they paired off.

* * *

Sam paced nervously before the control panels on the bridge. "Teal'c, is there any way of pin-pointing Jase and Karelle's location, or talking to the others?" She asked.

"There is." He replied, and beckoned her to him. They switched places, with Sam taking over the guard of Kennedy, who looked more worried with every passing second.

Sam gave him a shove into the wall as a warning.

"Try anything, and you'll be unconscious before you can blink." She whispered menacingly.

Teal'c worked quickly on the ship's controls, and found the two stowaways. "O'Neill." He called over the ship's intercom. "Karelle and Jase are close to your location. Take the passage to your right, followed by a left." He instructed.

* * *

Jase and Karelle jumped at the sudden noise of the intercom, and looked around for the source of the voice.

"I believe that was the voice of Teal'c." Karelle said disbelievingly, as Jack and Daniel ran round the corner, closely followed by Tally and Haley.

"Jase!" Tally squeaked, as he swept her into his arms.

Jack grinned. "Found 'em, T!" He yelled at the ceiling, for lack of a better direction to yell at a disembodied voice.

Karelle stepped forward. "Jack, it is wonderful to see that you are safe."

"Yes, likewise." He said slowly. "Speaking of which . . . how did you get here?"

Jase pulled apart from Tally, and grinned at the others. "We followed your ship."

Tally grinned at Jack with a 'told you so' expression. "And how exactly did you do that?" Jack asked.

Karelle beckoned to them. "Come. We will show you."

* * *

Upon seeing that the rest of their group were all together, Sam and Teal'c roughly hauled Kennedy down to the holding cells. He stayed uncharacteristically silent all the way down. They didn't say a word to him, but pushed him into the cell and locked the door. Task completed, they located the others via the ship's computer, and made their way to the docking bay.

The docking bay door slid open with a hiss, as Sam's jaw dropped and Teal'c rose both eyebrows to the ceiling. "What the hell . . . ?" Sam gasped.

Tally grinned at her from her position up in the 302's cockpit. "This is _so_ cool!" She exclaimed. She grinned at Jase, who was perched on one of the wings.

Sam and Teal'c entered the room slowly. Sam turned, gobsmacked, to Jack. "How did this get here?"

"Jase flew it." Tally said proudly.

"You're kidding."

"Nope. Kennedy lowered the magnetic field to beam us aboard, which made the 302 flight worthy."

Sam gaped at the eighteen year old boy on the wing. "Wow. I'm impressed."

Jase grinned shyly.

"So – what now?" Jack asked the assembled group.

They all looked at each other, feeling lost.

"As far as me and Tally are standing, I see two options. Either we go back to Amdra, or we go to Earth." Jase offered. Tally smiled uncertainly.

"I'm still not sure about that." She said quietly.

"Well you don't have to make up your minds right now." Jack told her. "How about for the moment, we all head back to Amdra, drop Karelle off and explain the situation to the folks back there, and then go to Earth for just a visit – to help you make up your minds. Whatever happens though, Sam and I need to do whatever we can to find Luke."

"You intend to tell the people of Tally's pregnancy?" Karelle inquired.

Tally looked scared, and Jase edged closer to her.

"Well if you stay there, they're gonna find out sooner or later, and you need to know how they're going to take it before deciding whether to stay." Daniel offered.

The young couple nodded thoughtfully.

"Let's do it." Tally said, looking directly at Jase.

He caught her gaze, and smiled slightly. "Yeah. You're right." He turned to the others. "We want to go back to Amdra, tell them the truth, and maybe go to Earth for a visit. Then we'll decide."

* * *

_What did you think? I tried to make it a bit longer than my usual chapters - don't know how successful I was though! Please review!_

_Beka_


	15. Burnt bridges

_**Found - part 15**_

_I've located my muse! The story is alive again! Sorry, just a little excited about actually enjoying my writing again! And not being completely stressed out for the first time in about ten days. Yayness. ENJOY!  
_

* * *

Their home seemed so bare. The O'Neill's belongings had been packed into carry-bags and transported up to the Gemini, in preparation for their departure. Gone were the pictures Tally and Luke had drawn as children, and the blankets Karelle had knitted them when they were babies. Gone were the notebooks with tiny scrawling handwriting which Sam had used up and kept for reference, and the hunting knife Jack had forged himself, and used for years and years until he had to accept his age, and turn his attention to less physically demanding activities. Gone was the necklace Jack had made for Sam on her fortieth birthday, and the little slab of dried clay with imprints of Tally and Luke's five and four year old hands, with their names scratched in childish handwriting underneath.

They stood now, just Sam, Jack and Karelle outside the door of their old home.

"I will miss you greatly." Karelle said, as she embraced Sam fiercely. Sam's eyes were squeezed shut against tears.

"Don't worry. We'll come back to visit." She promised. Karelle released her and moved on to Jack, who wrapped his arms around her.

"Take care." Jack told her.

"And you, Jack."

Karelle pulled back from Jack and took his and Sam's hands in her own. "If Kollen had lived to see this day …" she ducked her head briefly, but then looked up at them with a smile. "You have done so much for this village. Amdra is in your debt, and you will be sorely missed."

Sam squeezed Karelle's hand. "Amdra has been our home for a long time, and we'll miss it."

"But you know why we have to leave." Jack finished.

Karelle smiled sadly. "I know." She gave their hands a last squeeze and then let them go.

Sam glanced at her husband. "We'd better go see how the kids are doing."

Jack's expression darkened. "Yeah. Hopefully Daniel can work his magic on them and smooth things over."

"Thank you Karelle, for everything." Sam said, hugging her one more time.

"Good luck, my friends." Karelle said, and watched as they left the little house empty and quiet.

* * *

"HALEY! NOW would be a good time!" Jack yelled into his radio, as he, Sam, Tally, Daniel and Jase ran headlong through the woods, the more hot-headed of Jase's family in pursuit.

There was a flash of light, and the five of them collapsed on the bridge of the X-307. Teal'c and Haley stood over them, looking down at the almost comical group.

"I take it that it didn't go so well." Haley said cautiously. Tally and Jase shared a defeated look and sighed.

"That would be a no." Jack answered, scowling. "You know, for a village that has come so far in the last eighteen years . . . "

"They sure are pig-headed." Tally finished for him. She looked sadly at Jase.

"I'm sorry." She whispered to him. He gave her a sad smile and stroked her hair.

"Who needs 'em?" He gave a strained grin. "I'm going for a walk." He said suddenly, and strode quickly out of the room. Tally looked like she wanted to go after him, then decided against it, flopping down on the floor beside her mother. Sam put her arm round her daughter's shoulders and gave her a comforting squeeze.

"He'll be okay."

Tally nodded numbly. "Yeah."

"So . . . what now?" Daniel asked cautiously. Jack caught Sam's gaze and silently conferred with her.

"There's a briefing room on this ship, right?" He asked Daniel, who nodded in confirmation. "We'll all meet there in one hour. We need to decide what to do next, and there's still a lot you guys need to know about our situation." He answered, still holding Sam's gaze.

Daniel nodded, the glance Sam sent his way confirming his suspicion that Jack was talking about Luke, and the details Sam said she'd explain once they had control of the ship.

Without a word, Teal'c turned and left the room. Jack watched him go with a frown. "He's probably gone to talk to Jase. It's a good idea, he's the best person to help him at this stage."

Tally felt tears well up in her eyes, and she lay her head on Sam's shoulder. Sam and Jack shared another despairing look. They hated seeing their daughter hurting. Daniel and Haley went to check on their prisoner, leaving the oddball family alone.

* * *

Jase stared out of the Earth ship's window. There was a spectacular view of his home planet, as the star he'd grown up beneath was behind them, shining its light on the beautiful world. It seemed strangely unreal that he would probably never take a step on the surface again.

He sensed more than heard Teal'c approach from behind. He too had been trained as a warrior, and could tell it was Teal'c by the old man's heavy grace.

"I know why you're here." He told the jaffa wearily. Teal'c said nothing, but calmly took a position at the boy's side.

"Tally told me about you. Or she told me what her parents had told her about you, anyway. About how you were branded as a traitor on your planet and had to live with the Tau'ri, away from your home. You've come to give me a pep talk."

Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "Do you require one?"

Jase raised his chin defiantly. "No."

"Very well." Teal'c stared out at the stars in silence.

"Tally does that." He said suddenly. Teal'c cocked his head.

"Tally does what?"

"The silent thing. She can tell when I have something on my mind, and she just stays with me in silence until I can talk about it. She said it baffles her parents how much she is like you."

Teal'c smiled sedately. "You love her very much." He said simply.

Jase smiled softly, a look which made his face truly handsome. "Yes I do."

"You will make wonderful parents. I am certain of it. And you will survive, together."

Jase sighed, and stared out at Amdra with conviction. "Yes, we will."

Teal'c smiled and clasped Jase's shoulder supportively. Jase smiled back at him gratefully, and Teal'c bowed his head, and left.

* * *

_What did you think? Come on, tell me, I'm dying to know! I'm having tremendous fun writing the next chapter. Lot's of decisions and revelations and stuff. Please review me!_

_Beka :-P_


	16. Fork in the road

_**Found - part 16**_

_Sorry for the long gap. Life has been throwing many many time-consuming things at me in one go. Still, here is more. Let me know what you think!_

* * *

Six people sat somberly around a rectangular, metal table. Two couples held their partner's hands tightly, white-knuckled, nerves strained to breaking point. The older of these two couples sat at the head of the table, ready to tell their story.

"You all know the … _unusual_ circumstances behind Tally's birth?" Sam started, directing the question mainly at Teal'c and Haley, whom she hadn't told herself.

"We do." Teal'c answered – Tally had told him and Haley before Kennedy's attempt at kidnapping.

"What you don't know is that Nirrti's fetish for messing with people's bodies had more results than Tally's premature birth." Jack continued. "It also left Sam unable to bear more children."

Three sets of eyebrows rose in surprise and confusion.

"But then, how did Luke …?" Haley asked, frowning.

"Luke was not conceived or born naturally." Sam allowed this bomb-shell to settle before going on. "You know about the Ancients' lab in Amdra?" She checked. After receiving a handful of nods she continued. "At first we thought the lab was just some kind of observatory; the only piece of technology we'd studied was the system that emitted the sub-space distress call – the one which brought Nirrti to us – and the long-range sensors. However, Kollen's research into the texts from that era revealed that the Ancient, Rokezar, was actually rumored to have been involved in medical experimentation. We started to look at the technology in the rest of the room, and found that most of it was designed to restructure human DNA."

Haley looked at Teal'c uneasily. "And you're sure that this 'Rokezar' was an Ancient?"

"Yeah, why?" Jack asked.

"Well … to be honest altering human DNA sounds more like a goa'uld interest. Nirrti herself invested hundreds of years in altering human genetic coding to create the perfect host."

"But much of the technology she used to do it was Ancient in origin." Sam pointed out. Haley shrugged and nodded, conceding the point. "Believe me, we were a little more suspicious of Rokezar's intentions when we found out what the technology was for, but I don't think he had nefarious purposes."

"How can you be sure?" Teal'c asked.

"There were records, all written in Ancient, which documented his research into ascension." Jack answered.

"He was studying the genetic and physiological changes wrought by the process of ascension. He also had the means to study an individual subject's genetic code, and general health." Sam elaborated.

"We used it on Sam – we wanted to check she was okay after Nirrti had messed with her."

"Which is how they found out that Mom couldn't have any more children." Tally added. "They used it on me too a couple of years ago, to check if Nirrti had done anything to me when I was a baby."

"And?" Daniel asked.

"It said that physiologically she's fine, but I'm not a geneticist, so we're still not sure if Nirrti altered her DNA." Sam answered.

"Why did you wait so long to use the machine on Tally? I mean, wouldn't you have wanted to know she was okay back when she was a baby?" Haley asked.

"Would you want to put your newborn kid in an alien machine unless you absolutely had to?" Jack asked. Haley winced.

"No, I guess not."

"How did this lead to Luke?" Daniel asked.

"Believe it or not, that was actually an accident." Sam said. "It happened when Jack and I were down in the lab, studying a new machine."

"You were _both _studying the machine?" Daniel squinted at Jack skeptically.

"I translated stuff." Jack said defensively.

"Anyway," Sam cut them off before they could argue about it, "before we knew what it was, it had activated. At its top was a small cylinder, which started to glow a bright blue, and then scanned us in a very similar way to Thor's Hammer. Then the blue glow moved down the cylinder, into the machine, and the screen showed our 2 sets of genetic code. At that stage we figured it was just another way of studying human DNA. But then, we realized that the screen wasn't just displaying an ongoing analysis of our genetic coding, it was merging them."

"Merging them? You mean it was making Luke?" Daniel asked.

"Half an hour later, there was a foetus growing in a tank we discovered behind the machine's front panel." Jack finished.

Haley gaped at them. "That's incredible."

"I know." Sam agreed. "I couldn't believe it either."

"Half an hour? How did it do it so _fast_?"

"I'm still not sure. What's more, it only took two days for him to develop into a baby."

"How did you explain _that_ to the villagers?" Daniel asked.

"With difficulty." Jack smirked.

"We told them the truth. Sort of." Sam said.

Jase frowned. "I was told that you had said the lab merely helped you to conceive the second child you had been longing for. It sounded as though you had meant it to happen, and that Luke was grown …" he struggled to find the words, "… in _you_, rather than a machine."

Sam nodded. "We were worried about how people would react if they knew the full truth. I may not have carried Luke myself, but he's still –" her voice cracked with emotion, "he's still my little boy."

Jack squeezed Sam's hand a little tighter, and ducked his head. Around the table, eyes were averted until Sam had regained her composure.

"When Luke was 'born', the machine didn't just turn off." Jack continued eventually. "He had a microchip in his body, which linked with the machine which had made him, and allowed it to monitor his health constantly."

"You could go down to the lab anytime, day or night, and the machine's screen would always be displaying his vital signs." Sam explained.

"When he went out with the hunters for the first time, Sam sat by that machine and stared at the screen. She was convinced he was going to get hurt." Jack told them with a small smile.

There was a pregnant pause.

"What does the machine say now?" Teal'c asked eventually, voicing his companions' thoughts.

Sam stared resolutely at the table, and so Jack took it on himself to answer.

"It doesn't say anything. When we got back from chasing the ship in the '302, the machine had turned off."

Teal'c and Daniel exchanged grave looks. "It was switched on, showing Luke's health status for fifteen years, and then it turned off?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah."

"What does that mean?" Haley asked.

"It either means he's out of range, or …" Jack couldn't finish the sentence. Sam didn't trust herself to speak at all. They all knew what the 'or' was.

"There was a debris field, not far from Amdra. It might be the remains of the goa'uld ship which took Luke." Jack said hoarsely after a moment.

"If the '302 was operational, could you not have travelled to the nearest world with a Stargate and continued your search from there?" Teal'c asked.

"There isn't a planet with a Stargate within a three month trek in the '302." Sam answered. "And before you ask, we know because I programmed the lab's long range sensors to detect the combination of elements and sub-space disturbances which indicate the presence of a Stargate."

"And I presume the hyperdrive doesn't work anymore?" Haley asked.

"Nope. That was toast pretty soon after we got here." Jack answered her tiredly.

"The naquadria was too unstable to use after the crash." Sam filled in. "If we'd tried back then, the ship may well have exploded. Now it's too late to even turn the drive on. We harvested too many parts from it back when we arrived."

Silence reigned in the small room while the inhabitants digested the new information.

"Sam, I hate to say this, but …" Daniel started uneasily.

"There's still a chance, Daniel. I know the odds don't look good, but I can't just give up and accept that my son is dead."

"Neither can I." Jack agreed.

"So what do we do?" Tally asked.

Haley took a deep breath. "I don't think you should go back to Earth." She said.

Sam and Jack stared at her in shock. "What?"

"We need Earth's help to find out what happened to Luke." Sam protested.

"Guys, back in the Milky Way, we're in the middle of a war with the Ori. President Kinsey agreed to loan us this ship _only_ because we didn't take a crew, and we agreed to be back, with you two, within two weeks. I convinced him we could use your expertise." Daniel told them. "He's not going to be willing to expend resources looking for Luke."

"Well we sure as hell can't go back to Amdra!" Jack retorted.

"We've pretty much burnt all our bridges in Amdra. Karelle tried to help, but really there's only so much weight a woman's voice can carry there, despite being a village elder." Sam explained.

"We've got nowhere to go." Tally summed up.

Teal'c stood suddenly, and moved to look out of the large window at the starry expanse of space. "Perhaps there is an alternative."

The O'Neill's looked up at him, expectantly. The old jaffa turned to face them.

"I am no longer a member of the SGC. There is no reason why I should have to return to Earth. Perhaps, Major Haley and Daniel Jackson could return to Earth with Major Kennedy in the Gemini, after leaving the rest of us on a planet in this galaxy with a Stargate." He suggested. "From there, we could continue your search for Luke."

"But you don't have any gate addresses." Haley pointed out. "How will you know where to look?"

"I know the addresses to a great many worlds, from which we can gather information." Teal'c said. "That, is not a problem."

Daniel looked out the window at the stars. He wasn't sure what to do. On the one hand, he wanted to be there for his friends, and help to find Luke. On the other hand, he knew he couldn't. The Ori were growing in strength everyday, and Earth still needed him – he had unique experience that could help in the ongoing struggle against them.

"Let's head back to the Milky Way. We may as well start on familiar territory." Jack said. "But I want Tally to go with Daniel and Haley."

"No! Dad –" Tally protested.

"He's right, baby." Sam said soothingly. "You need to take care of yourself now. You'll be safer on Earth."

"I'm not going to just sit on my hands while you two are off looking for Luke. I want to help. I _can _help."

"I'll go with them." Jase told her. "Don't worry, we'll find him. And we'd all be much happier knowing that you and the baby were safe."

Tally scowled at them all. "What am I supposed to do on Earth?"

Sam and Jack exchanged looks. "Learn. Earth is way ahead of Amdra technologically, and then when you're caught up they're bound to want your help. You're smart Tally, and it sounds like the SGC can use all the help it can get right now." Sam answered.

Tally sighed in resignation. "I really don't want to let you guys go without me."

"I know sweetheart. But we need you to sit this one out." Sam got up and put her arms round Tally from behind. "We'll be okay. This is what we're good at."

Daniel looked at his two old friends critically. "Guys, no offense, but that was a long time ago. You're a little older now."

"Gee thanks, Daniel." Jack retorted, but shifted uneasily. He was over sixty, and suspected that Daniel might be right.

"I'm fine." Sam argued. "I'm 51, and I'm still perfectly capable of handling myself in combat."

"Okay, but Jack …" Daniel looked nervously at his friend.

"I'll be fine, dammit. I'll try to avoid situations where I might have to run a lot." Jack shot back, irritated.

Daniel stared at him unhappily for a while longer, and then spoke again.

"So, Haley, Tally, Kennedy and I will take the Gemini back to the SGC. We'll drop Sam, Jack, Jase and Teal'c off at …"

"Chulak." Teal'c filled in.

"Chulak." Daniel nodded. "What shall I tell Dr Weir?"

"That we left without telling you, and you couldn't stop us." Jack said unflinchingly.

"But Jack, if I say that …"

"We'll be in trouble when we finally get back to Earth." Sam finished. "It's okay Daniel. For the moment it's more important that you're not in trouble. We'll need you in the clear so you can tell them about Kennedy."

Daniel nodded.

Silence descended the room. There was nothing left to talk about.

Jack stood up. "Alright, let's do it."

* * *

_Please please please review! It will make my month! What do you think of the decisions they made?_

_Beka_


	17. Separate Ways

_**Found - part 17**_

_I'm so sorry that this took so long to arrive, but here it is. Enjoy! Ooo - things you need to know: Dr Elizabeth Weir is in command of the SGC, and General Hank Landry is in command of Area 51 in the Nevada desert, where the X-307 docks. I know its screwing with the timeline, but I've already done that significantly so why stop now?  
_

_

* * *

_"This is getting old." Jack said, levering himself up off the cold stone bench once more to pace restlessly.

"Teal'c said he'd be back before sundown." Sam reminded him. "We just have to be patient."

"I don't do well with waiting." Jack retorted, his irritation and frustration flaring. "I'm not a wait-er. I'm a do-er. I should be out there …"

"'Doing'?" Sam guessed, with an almost teasing smile.

"Teal'c will be able to find this jaffa, won't he?" Jase asked nervously.

Sam nodded to him reassuringly. "If he's alive, Teal'c will find him. Don't worry."

"He'll just take _several years_ doing it!" Jack said snarkily.

"Jack." Sam admonished him. "It's only been three and a half hours. Give him some time."

Jack scowled and returned to his stone seat. The three of them were seated outside Teal'c's home on Chulak, waiting for him to return from searching for the first prime of Gal'Tak, the goa'uld who had tipped Teal'c off to Sam and Jack's location on Amdra. Over a long journey back to the Milky Way, the group had had plenty of time to share intel and figure out where to start in their search for Luke. Jack closed his eyes and went over the finer points of one particular conversation again in his head.

_(Aboard the Gemini, en-route to the Milky Way)_

"_So Teal'c, if the jaffa back in the 'ole Milky Way have been free for fifteen years, how come we got attacked by a good old fashioned Goa'uld and his merry band of jaffa a year ago?" Jack asked Teal'c one day while they were playing chess._

_Teal'c looked up from the game. "The jaffa of _this_ galaxy are free, however, apparently the Goa'uld in the Amdrans' galaxy are still at large."_

_Jack paused. "Don't you think we should do something about that?"_

_Teal'c looked uncomfortable. "Indeed. However, at the moment, we have bigger fish to fry."_

_Jack cocked his head. "Was that an _idiom_? You've been practicing!"_

_Teal'c smiled, and promptly took Jack's knight. "The Goa'uld are a plague upon this universe, but the Ori are far worse." The jaffa said evenly. Jack looked a little spooked._

"Worse_ that the Goa'uld? Then why are you helping me and Sam and leaving Earth to fend for itself?"_

_Once again, Teal'c looked uncomfortable. "Earth has not required my assistance for a while now. The new establishment feels … _ill at ease _… with a jaffa in a position of authority at the SGC."_

"_Kinsey." Jack spat._

"_He is not the only one. The jaffa high council has similar qualms about my former association with the Tau'ri. I regret to inform you that the jaffa-Tau'ri alliance has been difficult to maintain."_

"_Not exactly the best of situations if we're trying to fight an enemy worse than the Goa'uld." Jack noted._

"_Indeed."_

_Jack twiddled a chess piece in his hands distractedly. "So what are we going to do? If the galaxy's in a state of disarray and the Goa'uld aren't a power there anymore anyway … what's the point in us going to the Milky Way?"_

"_The first prime of Gal'Tak." Teal'c answered succinctly._

_Jack looked at him for a moment, expecting more. "Gonna need you to elaborate on that a little, buddy."_

_Teal'c looked mildly surprised. "You were informed, were you not, that we were able to find you thanks to information provided by the first prime of Gal'Tak?"_

"_Uh, no, that would be news." Jack said, eyebrows raised high. "Wasn't Gal'Tak the name of the Goa'uld who –"_

" – _raided your world and stole your son one year ago." Teal'c finished. "His first prime has since come to our galaxy. He claimed to have heard rumors of the jaffa uprising in the 'Milky Way', and journeyed from his galaxy to seek the truth. He wishes to secure freedom for the jaffa of his galaxy, and one of the pieces of information he gave us, was your whereabouts."_

_Jack mouthed at Teal'c like a goldfish for a minute, not sure what question to ask first._

"_And you know where this man … I mean jaffa … is?"_

_Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "I know where to start looking."_

_Jack took a deep breath. "Teal'c, if he survived … there's a good chance the ship didn't blow up like we were afraid it did. Luke could still be alive as well."_

_Teal'c bowed his head. "Exactly."_

_

* * *

_Sam was dozing with her head on Jack's shoulder when Teal'c finally came back. Jase stood as soon as he saw the large jaffa, and Sam shook Jack's arm to rouse him.

"Did you find him?" Jack asked as soon as his eyes locked on Teal'c.

Teal'c pinned him with an intense gaze. "No, but I know where he may have gone. We must depart immediately."

Sam stood quickly and took Jack's arm to help him up – much to the old Colonel's chagrin – and the foursome gathered cloaks and left.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This is Daniel Jackson calling Stargate Command. Stargate Command, please respond." Daniel said clearly into the Gemini's comms system. He, Major Haley, Tally and Major Kennedy – the latter in restraints – were standing on the bridge of the X-307, Earth looming on the viewscreen.

"This is Stargate Command, we read you Gemini. You're cleared to dock."

"Thank you." Daniel replied, and nodded to Haley. She brought the Gemini down through the atmosphere easily, and Tally watched awestruck as the planet came closer, the sands of the Nevada desert stretching out before her, with the spider of roads and infrastructure getting larger and larger as they approached.

Then, they dropped beneath the level of the tallest buildings, and all that could be seen was grey as the ship lowered into the dock. Daniel watched Haley until with a soft thump they landed, and she nodded to him.

"Gemini reports a successful landing. Requesting permission to disembark."

"Permission granted Gemini. Welcome home. Your transport to the SGC is waiting on the surface."

"Understood, Gemini out."

Daniel stood up, and fixed an icy gaze on Kennedy. "Haley, I want you to take Major Kennedy to General Landry's office and explain what happened, and make sure proper precautions are taken for his transport back to Cheyenne Mountain."

"You can't give orders round here." Kennedy snarled. "I'm the ranking officer and I'm ordering you to remove these restraints."

"This way, sir." Haley said to him, giving him a tug in the direction of the door for good measure.

Daniel watched them go, then turned to Tally. "You ready?"

Tally smiled apprehensively. "As I'll ever be."

He gave her shoulders a squeeze and smiled reassuringly as they started towards the door. "Don't worry, Dr Weir's a great commander. She'll make sure you're treated properly, and I'll be looking out for you as well."

Tally took a deep breath. "Yeah. I just wish …"

"I know. But your parents and Jase will be fine, and there's lots for you to do here in the meantime."

She nodded. "Ok. I can do this."

Daniel smiled. "Of course you can."

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_Ta da! Reviews would be greatly appreciated, especially opinions about what should happen!_

_Beka ;-D  
_


	18. The first prime of Gal'Tak

**_Found - part 18_**

_I had fun writing this chapter! I hope you enjoy it.  
_  


* * *

"His name is Makrum." Teal'c informed them as they walked towards the little village on the jaffa world known as Kortma. "I have arranged through a mutual acquaintance for us to meet him in the local tavern."

"How sure are you that he'll show?" Jack asked, walking a step behind the jaffa.

"As sure as I can be." Teal'c answered evenly, causing Jack to share a skeptical glance with Sam.

They reached the small arrangement of brick houses and cobbled streets, and quickly identified the tavern as the only building with lights in the windows, the golden glow spilling out into the dark night.

"Alright, here's the game plan." Jack said as they reached the door. "Sam, Jase, stay out here and keep watch; T and I will go talk to this Makrum."

Sam opened her mouth to protest, but Jack held up a hand to stop her. "We don't want to spook him into running by overcrowding him, and I'd feel happier knowing we've got you two watching our backs in case there's trouble." He argued.

Sam sighed with a frown. "Fine. But don't be too long. We don't want to spook the locals by lurking out here." Jack nodded, and he and Teal'c disappeared into the light and noise of the building.

Inside, the pair scanned the occupants for Makrum. With a meaningful glance at Jack, Teal'c headed to the bar, and sat beside a man wearing a hooded cloak. Jack made an effort not to roll his eyes at how clichéd this felt.

"I am looking for Makrum, first prime of Gal'Tak." Teal'c announced quietly.

"You are Teal'c?" The man in the cloak asked.

"I am." Teal'c confirmed, and the cloaked jaffa removed his hood.

"Then I am Makrum." He said, facing the pair. Jack fought the surge of rage that assaulted him at the sight of the golden tattoo on Makrum's forehead. He vaguely recognized the jaffa's face too – although that wasn't surprising given Jack had been leading the defense of Amdra. He leaned in to get a better view of him.

"Your jaffa kidnapped a fifteen year old boy on a planet called Amdra a year ago." Jack said, with as little malice as he could keep from creeping into his voice. "We want to know where he is."

"Luke." Makrum said, nodding. "Yes, I know who you are, Colonel O'Neill." He added as Jack's eyebrows rose in surprise. "You and Major Carter were the reason Gal'Tak ordered the attack on your planet."

"How did you know of them?" Teal'c asked.

"Gal'Tak was once a lieutenant of Lady Nirrti's. He learned from her that you and Major Carter knew the secrets of an Ancient lab, a collection of powerful technologies hidden on the planet. He decided that with the demise of Nirrti, he would capture you both and discover the secret that would –"

"Give him a leg up on the other Goa'uld." Jack finished testily. "So you came and got your asses whipped. Why take Luke?"

"My jaffa ran into young Luke and captured him, thinking he would make an excellent specimen for Gal'Tak's new host." Jack stood up so suddenly that his stool toppled over, his fists clenched so that his knuckles were white.

"Tell me you didn't."

"However," Makrum continued hurriedly, "when they summoned me to inspect him he said that he wasn't afraid because his father would save him," Jack's stomach clenched painfully, "and when I enquired who his father was …"

"That doesn't answer my question." Jack said angrily.

"It was clear by that point that we were not going to succeed in taking the planet, or capturing yourself and Major Carter. Your people are extraordinarily skilled fighters, and we were losing the battle. I decided instead to take the boy, thinking he may have some of the knowledge Gal'Tak sought."

Teal'c glanced worriedly at Jack, who was still standing and was breathing very heavily in barely contained rage.

"We were planning to interrogate him on the ship. However, we were distracted from our previous goals when we discovered sabotage. It greatly weakened us, and we suffered heavy damage when we were attacked by one of Gal'Tak's rivals shortly after leaving your planet. We were still victorious though." Makrum smiled in satisfaction. Jack made a step towards him but Teal'c held him back.

"Where is Luke now?" Teal'c asked, thinking it best to get the answer they had come for quickly, before Jack's anger overtook him and Makrum ended up dead.

"When I eventually got to interrogating the boy, two weeks had passed." Makrum continued, caught up in the role of story-teller and temporarily oblivious to Jack's murderous impatience. "He was stubborn – apparently so much time in isolation with little food was not enough to weaken his spirit. I demanded that he tell me of the Ancient lab and its secrets, but he would not say a word. Instead …"

Makrum stopped suddenly, and almost smiled at the memory.

"Instead _what?_" Jack barked.

"You should be proud of having raised such an intelligent and courageous young boy." Makrum said, with a genuine smile at Jack. "He was quite perceptive, and not afraid to use his intellect to his advantage. He knew I could easily kill him and yet he didn't hesitate to challenge me."

"What happened?" Teal'c pressed.

"He realized that I doubted Gal'Tak's divine power, and pressed it to his advantage. He told me about the free jaffa of this galaxy, and said that if we stopped worshipping Gal'Tak and other Goa'uld as Gods, we too could achieve freedom. I was intrigued – I have long known that Gal'Tak was not a god, but there seemed to be no sensible alternative to serving him. His power was too great. But Luke made me realize something – the goa'uld's power comes from us, the jaffa who serve them. You must have found a way to break the indoctrination of the jaffa in this galaxy, and so I escaped from Gal'Tak's ship with Luke and together we travelled to this galaxy, so that I might find a way for my people to be free as yours are."

Jack's breath caught in his throat. "Luke's here? He's alright?"

"He is in this galaxy, but no longer with me." Makrum answered. "It became clear his knowledge of this galaxy, while initially useful, was severely limited, and so I left him on a human world and proceeded alone."

Jack moved very close to Makrum, staring at him intently. "_Which_ human world?"

Makrum blinked at him. "I do not know its name."

"Do you have a Chappa'ai address?" Teal'c asked.

Makrum nodded slowly. "But, I wish to trade for it."

Jack's control finally broke, and he grabbed Makrum by the collar and pressed him up against the wall. "You wanna trade? Alright, how about you give us the gate address, and I don't _kill you_."

Makrum spluttered at him, clawing at Jack's grip on his throat. "I only want to know how you defeated the Goa'uld in this galaxy." He wheezed.

That brought the fight out of Jack a bit, and he grudgingly released him a little, looking back at Teal'c, who stepped forwards obligingly.

"I will tell you all you wish to know. But first, you must give us the address." Teal'c said. Makrum nodded, and fumbled in his robes for a scrap of paper.

"Here. This is where I left him."

* * *

_Whaddaya think? Please review, I'm always over the moon to get any feedback!_

_Beka :-)  
_


	19. Chasing memories

**_Found - part 19_**

_Guys, I am so so sorry for the long wait. I know it's been over a month since my last update. I've been swamped with essays and illness and the horrors of house-hunting. I hope this chapter can make up for the wait. Thank you for your patience, and please please review!_

_

* * *

_  
"Knock knock." Daniel poked his head round the door of Tally's quarters.

"Hey." She greeted him tiredly. "How was the debriefing?"

He came in and shut the door behind him, wincing at the question. "Let's just say I'm glad we have a leader as sympathetic as Dr Weir to argue against what Kinsey would like to do with me."

Tally grimaced in sympathy. "Did you tell them what Dad told you to? That they escaped off of the ship without telling you?"

Daniel gave a half shrug. "Sort of. I said I suspected they would but chose to turn a blind eye to it because I happened to agree with them."

"Ooh, Dad's not gonna be happy with you."

"Neither was the government. However, at present I'm more valuable to them in my job, so they're basically just giving me a slap on the wrist." He told her. He glanced at the cover of the book she was reading.

"Quantum Theory? I thought you were studying contemporary Earth culture?"

"I've been doing that all day. This –" she held up the book, "- is for fun."

Daniel smirked at her. "Your mom would be so proud." He teased, and she gave him a playful shove.

"Actually, some of this stuff is already familiar to me. Mom's been teaching me physics all my life, and she covered a lot of the popular theories. What I'm most worried about at this stage is getting too comfortable with these theories only to discover that the SGC has since blown them out of the water, and just can't tell anyone about it."

He patted her on the shoulder. "I suspect you'll catch on. I can ask one of the scientists to help you if you like."

Immediately Tally's eyes lit up. "Really? Do you think they would mind?"

"I'm sure they'd be happy to take you under their wing. You know, Dr Lee's actually looking for a lab assistant."

"That would be amazing!" She gushed.

"I'll have a word with him." Daniel promised. "How are you settling in?"

Tally shrugged. "Okay, I guess. It's a little weird, everyone keeps staring at me like I've got two heads."

He smiled. "They'll get used to you, just give it a little time."

"Yeah." Daniel looked at her, worried at the despondent tone that had just crept into her voice.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Tally forced a smile. "Yeah, it's just … I'm worried about the others. My entire family is out there somewhere, as well as the boy I love, and I have no way of knowing whether or not they're okay. It's driving me mad. I keep thinking I should be with them."

"That's perfectly natural. To be honest, I'd be worried if you _weren't_ concerned about them. Just remember that your mom and dad used to do this kind of thing for a living, Teal'c still does do this all the time, and Jase is a very capable young man."

She nodded. "I know." She looked carefully at Daniel, noticing for the first time how exhausted he looked. "Hey, is everything okay? You look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders."

Daniel gave her a tired smile. "That's exactly what it feels like at times. The Ori have been upping the anti on their crusade while we were gone."

"How bad is it?"

"It's bad. The priors have started talking about a 'day of reckoning', and we think it's going to be soon. What we don't know is what form it will take; at the moment most people think it'll be a final attack with an armada of ships."

Tally looked alarmed. "Is there any way to fight back?"

"That's what we're working on. Our ships are nowhere near powerful enough to take on even one of those things and win, so we're hoping to find something else to fight them with."

"Got any ideas?"

Daniel looked strained. "Nothing concrete. We've been looking for a device which an Ancient called Myrdin, or Merlin, created – the San Graal, which was known on Earth in King Arthur's time as the Holy Grail. It's supposed to be capable of destroying ascended beings."

Tally's eyes widened. "Like the Ori. So I'm guessing you don't know where it is?"

"We've had a few leads but so far they've been fruitless."

She nodded. "You know, if there's anything I can do to help …"

"Thanks, but you need to stay here and study." He patted her books with a smile.

"I'm gonna go nuts here after a while. I'm just saying, if you need another pair of boots on the ground, helping with the search."

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Daniel asked, looking pointedly at her stomach.

She sighed. "Yeah. I guess. It's just … I don't like doing nothing when people I care about are fighting a war."

"You inherited that from your parents." He said, a little fondly. "Don't worry, we've been fighting the galaxy's bad guys for a while, and we're getting good at it."

"You shouldn't have to do it long enough to get good at it." Tally said a little petulantly. "Why can't the Ori just stick to their own galaxy and be happy with it?"

"Cos they're the bad guys." Daniel answered. Tally smiled reluctantly.

"Yeah."

Daniel stood up. "Come on, let's go get some dinner."

Tally nodded and moved her books from the bed to the table, before following the ageing archaeologist out.

* * *

Jack, Sam, Teal'c and Jase stepped through the wormhole into a downpour of rain, all four automatically stooping against the sudden barrage of water. They were instantly soaked, not having come prepared for rain, and their clothes stuck to their skin, their hair clinging to their heads in wet tendrils. Jack pulled his cloak tighter around himself and yelled over the noise of the storm.

"Quickly, follow me!"

He set off at a jog down a trail through the grass, not stopping till they'd reached the tree-line and shelter. He could see the trail continued through about 20 yards of woodland before re-emerging in the rain.

"Anyone pack an umbrella?" He quipped when they were all out of the storm.

"I think we're going to have to rely on the kindness of strangers." Sam said. "That path looks well-used – I'm guessing these people use the Stargate quite a bit, probably for trade, and they'll be used to visitors."

"We should not remain here long. The wind is extremely cold – it would not be wise to catch a chill." Teal'c said. Jack raised his eyebrows at him.

"You sound like my grandmother. Alright, let's keep going folks." He headed onwards, again breaking into a jog when they'd cleared the trees.

Breaking into a sprint and easily pulling ahead of the group, Jase banged on the door of the first house they came to. As the others caught up, the door opened. In the doorway stood a middle-aged woman.

"Yes?" She said expectantly.

"Please, we need shelter from the rain. We're visitors, we came through the Stargate." Jase said breathlessly.

As the three others came to a stop behind Jase, the woman took in their soaking appearance with a mouth twisted in annoyance. "Very well, but watch where you go. I don't want water all over my furniture." She acquiesced, opening the door wider for them.

"Thank you." They all entered the house, gratefully accepting the wooden stools the woman provided.

"Sit on these, you can wait here till the storm passes, but then I want you out. My boys will be back soon and I don't need you underfoot while I'm giving them their supper."

"We'll go as soon as the rain eases up." Sam promised her. Jack prodded her in the ribs, and raised his eyebrows at her, silently communicating something.

"Excuse me, Mrs …?"

"My name is Malla." The woman filled in, busying around them with towels.

"Malla, my name's Sam, and this is Jack, Teal'c and Jase. We're actually here looking for someone – mine and Jack's son, Luke."

"I don't know any Luke." Malla told her.

"Maybe not by name." Jase interjected. "He's a little younger than I am, light colored hair, arrived here about eight months ago with a jaffa named Makrum."

Malla gaze fixed on Jase, her eyes narrowing slightly in recognition. "I think I know … yes, I know who you mean. The jaffa and the boy. The jaffa left immediately, but the boy stayed a few months."

"Stayed a few months? You mean he left?" Jack checked.

"Oh yes, left with a trader. Got bored of life on a backwater little planet like ours." The woman answered scathingly. "Ungrateful little runt, after we took him in, fed him, all for nothing …"

Jack exchanged an exasperated look with Sam. "Please, do you have any information that could help us find him?"

Malla stopped tidying and looked him in the eye. "I've told you all I know. When the rain stops, ask Durka instead. The boy was living with him, so he might have something more for you." She eyed the puddles they were making on her floor, and pulled out a mop.

"Here, make yourselves useful."

* * *

"I can't believe we've lost the trail again." Sam said, sitting next to Jack with her head on his sodden shoulder. "He felt so close this time."

"We haven't lost the trail. We know he left with a trader, and this Gurkha fella will probably know which one." Jack countered.

"His name was Durka." Jase supplied helpfully, earning himself a scowl from Jack.

"I knew that." The truth was, these days his mispronunciation of names was more due to forgetfulness than wit, and he didn't like to be reminded of it.

"The rain is lessening." Teal'c said, rising from his stool. "We should depart."

The others rose, Jack with determination and Sam a little wearily. Jack rubbed her back.

"Don't worry, we'll find him." He told her quietly.

Outside, the mud had turned to a goopy swamp, and the cold air was biting their skin through their still sodden clothes. Malla had given directions to Durka's home, and they were anxious to get there and out of the wind again.

This time, when they knocked on a door, the answer was from a man of about 50. He looked them up and down in surprise. "Can I help you?"

"Durka?" Teal'c inquired.

"Yes … I'm sorry, do I know you people?"

"No, but we think you knew our son." Jack told him. "Luke O'Neill."

Durka smiled. "Yes, I knew Luke. He stayed here for awhile." Suddenly, the penny dropped. "Wait, you say he's your son? But he told me you were in another galaxy, stranded on a primitive world. How can you be here?"

"We were rescued." Sam answered. "Do you know where we can find Luke?"

Durka frowned. "You'd best come in."

In contrast to Malla, Durka had them sit in large armchairs in front of the fireplace, and brought blankets for them to warm up in.

"Luke was left here after the jaffa he was travelling with abandoned him." Durka told them. "He was going door to door, asking if anyone knew of the Tau'ri, or a way to get to Earth. When he knocked on my door, the poor lad was exhausted and close to despair. I told him to stay with me and we'd ask the traders who pass through if they could help him. Turns out the Tau'ri are quite secretive about their gate address – lots had heard of them, none knew the address. But Luke said that wouldn't have helped much anyway, as their gate is protected by an iris."

"We know, we're from Earth originally ourselves." Sam said.

"Ah, of course, of course, I knew that." Durka said. "You must forgive me, the old memory is not what it once was."

Jack winced in sympathy.

"None of the traders were willing and able to help Luke – to be honest I rather thought that some who might have been able were being scared off by his persistence. He was a little …"

"He doesn't take no for an answer." Jack filled in. "He gets that from me." It wasn't a threat, but it made Durka shift uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry, I don't know how much help I'm going to be. Luke left a long time ago. And with these trader types, you never know where they're going to end up. Often, they don't have homes as such, and they roam from planet to planet by ship."

"Do you have a name? Or any idea where the one Luke left with was going?" Sam asked, sounding almost desperate.

Durka smiled sadly at her. "Luke left with this particular trader, because she claimed to know people who knew the Tau'ri gate address. Personally, I got the impression she was more interested in the leverage Luke could provide if she managed to contact the Tau'ri with him. It's well known the Tau'ri are very particular with who they trade with, and what they trade. A borderline crook like her wouldn't get a look in without having something they wanted badly."

"Do you know where they went?" Jack asked again, feeling impatient.

"I don't know where they went first, or where they are now, but they will certainly have passed through Basaan Rhyn. It's a planet made up almost entirely of traders, and is the largest market I know of in the galaxy. If you go there, it is likely someone will have seen them, and can suggest where they may be now. I'm assuming of course, that they have not reached Earth?"

The four silently conferred. "We would have heard from Daniel Jackson if that were the case." Teal'c said heavily.

"This is the address for Basaan." Durka said, writing the symbols out on a piece of paper. The group stood up, preparing to leave.

"Durka, one more thing, the name of the trader?" Jack asked.

Durka looked at the group intently.

"Her name is Vala Mal Doran."

* * *

_I know I'm messing with the timeline mercilessly. Just to clear things up, in my timeline, Vala never joined SG1. The Ori are still a real threat, but they've taken a LOT longer in their campaign, which is why the 'Day of Reckoning' and the stuff with the San Graal is only coming up now, fifteen-ish years later. Don't worry about that part too much, I'm not planning on using the Ori for much more than reasons why the SGC drag their feet in helping Sam, Jack and Luke. Anyhoo, thank you for reading, and again I am so sorry for keeping you waiting so long. Hope you enjoyed it!  
_

_Beka :-)  
_


	20. Searching

**_Found - part 20_**

_Because I'm still feeling really guilty for having kept you waiting so long between chapters, I decided to write another one today, and here it is, with a waiting period of . . . (drum roll please) . . . one day! You mustn't get used to this kind of treatment! Thanks for the reviews, and please keep them coming! It encourages me so much._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

On a far off planet called Hemel, people were digging. Two suns chased each other across the sky as the days wore on, always returning at dawn to find the people still in the dirt trenches, busy with their shovels and spades. There was only one person who never joined the digging. She patrolled the edge of the dig site, issuing orders, bringing fresh water to the workers, and smiling broadly all the time. It was here, she could feel it.

Down in one of the dug out ditches, a teenage boy stood his shovel in the mud, and wiped the sweat from his brow with an old cloth, squinting up against the harsh sunlight to see the woman who'd brought him there.

"Are you gonna help at all, Vala, or just watch?" Luke asked irritably.

"I _am_ helping darling." She responded happily. "I'm _supervising_."

Luke's eyebrows rose a couple of notches. "I can't believe these people are just letting you use them as slaves to dig up their own land." He commented.

Vala sighed impatiently and sat down at the edge of the trench, her legs swinging. "Slaves don't get paid."

"Neither do these people."

She cocked her head to one side, her face becoming a mask of innocence. "Are you suggesting I won't honor my promise?"

"To pay them half of the treasure you find? The tablet might not lead to treasure. And we've been digging for six days; it might not even be here."

Vala huffed irritably. "Look, I have it on good authority that the tablet _is_ here, and it _is_ a treasure map. And once we find it, all we have to do is take it to the Tau'ri and they won't be able to resist letting us through their gate to get a good look at it. Trust me, I am intimately acquainted with one Dr Daniel Jackson, and he simply can't refuse the chance to translate anything written by aliens thousands of years ago. Plus, he'll no doubt fall victim to my ravishing good looks once again and I'll be able to wrap him round my little finger and get him to do anything I want." She said with a smirk, waggling the aforementioned finger.

Luke looked skeptical. "And then you think they'll let _you_ take the treasure that the tablet _supposedly_ says is hidden on Earth?"

Vala smiled slyly. "Oh, don't you worry about that. I have that all taken care of."

The young boy narrowed his eyes as he regarded the raven-haired woman. "What are you going to do, Vala?" He asked suspiciously.

She grinned at him. "Nothing, darling. Now, less talk, more digging." With that she jumped to her feet and continued her patrol around the dig site. Luke laughed and shook his head. He knew Vala had nefarious intentions, but there was little he could do about it. At least he'd talked her out of pretending to be a God to get the locals to help dig. Now all he had to do was ensure she honored her agreement and paid them – with or without Earth's little treasure trove, he knew she had the means to pay them what they deserved.

His main concern though, was getting back to Earth himself. Vala assured him that his parents' friends, Daniel Jackson and Teal'c, were still alive and working at the SGC, and he knew they'd take him in. He was even harboring a faint hope that they might send one of the Tau'ri ships to Amdra to take him home, although given the state of affairs in the galaxy as he'd learnt them from Vala, he knew that was unlikely. Vala's plan though, was likely the only way he'd get the SGC to let him through their Stargate. She'd assured him she knew the address, but the Tau'ri were cautious – they didn't let strangers in without good reason. Once Vala's good reason had got them in, then he could tell them who he was.

That was the plan, anyway.

He was pulled from his little reverie when a shout echoed across the muddy ditches. He vaulted out of his own trench and hurried over to the source of the outburst, and peeked through the crowd that had gathered to see two men brushing dusty mud away from something wrapped in cloth.

"Out of the way." He heard Vala's commanding voice ring out over the crowd, which obediently parted to let her through to the trench. "Have you found it?" She asked excitedly. The two men finished unburying the object, and held it up to her. She took it, and peeled the cloth away, squealing in delight when she saw the contents.

Somehow, her eyes found his in the crowd. "This is it!" She turned the package towards him, to reveal, wrapped in a dirty, cream colored rag, two halves of an Ancient tablet. "We found it."

* * *

Basaan Rhyn was teeming with people, jaffa and human alike. Teal'c, Jack, Sam and Jase stuck close together for fear of losing each other, fingering the holsters which held their zats nervously as fights broke out sporadically around them. As far as the eye could see, streets were lined with shops and canvas covered stalls, selling everything from knives, to engine parts, to perfumes. The group was following Teal'c, who seemed to have some idea of where he was going.

It seemed he did, because eventually they emerged from the crowds and found a quiet spot at the top of a bridge to have a good look around. "It appears that the entire East side is devoted to the weapons market." Teal'c observed. "The Southern streets nearest the Stargate are a farmers' market, selling agricultural goods and livestock. On the other side of the river towards the North, are mechanical and technological items, and to the West we will find the market for fine gems, precious metals, elixirs, perfume, medicine …"

"Etcetera …?" Jack guessed. Teal'c bowed his head in agreement.

"So where will Vala have needed to go?" Jase asked.

"Well, Durka said she was most famous for trading the more expensive fare." Sam noted. "So I'm guessing weapons, precious metals …"

"Alright, we'll split up." Jack decided. "Teal'c, Sam, head West to the fancy jewels department. Jase and I will check out the arms dealers."

"Are you sure it's a good idea to separate?" Sam asked nervously. "I mean, this place seems pretty dangerous, and Tally and I will not be best pleased if you two go and get yourselves killed by asking arms dealers awkward questions and then not buying anything."

Teal'c regarded Jack and Jase apprehensively. "I must concur with Samantha. We should remain together."

Jack sighed, and shrugged. "Alright. Let's all head West first, and then we'll go back to the weaponry section if we have to." He headed off across the bridge, the other three right behind him.

They quickly discovered in their enquiries that most of the traders had heard of Vala – with varying opinions of her, from friend to thief – but none knew where she might be found. It seemed she was something of a free spirit. They were just heading back to the bridge, when a group of large jaffa surrounded them, all touting weapons that looked like a terrifying cross between a P90 and a staff weapon.

"Boys." Jack greeted them conversationally. "What can we do for you?"

One of them stepped towards him menacingly. "We hear you're making enquiries about Vala Mal Doran."

Sam's fingers travelled down into her pocket slowly, the cold casing of her zat reassuringly close.

"Really? Funny how rumors start, isn't it?" Jack replied easily. Teal'c glared at him.

"We do not know her. We only wish to retrieve something from her which belongs to us." Teal'c assured them, trying to get them out of the hole Jack was digging.

"Yes. Your son." The jaffa said with a smirk, his finger waggling between Sam and Jack. "You must miss him very much." He taunted them.

Sam and Jack exchanged uneasy looks.

"We do not wish to cause any trouble." Teal'c tried again.

"That's good. We don't want to hurt anybody either." Their large companions said not entirely convincingly. "We all want the same thing here. We want something from Vala. We're going to help each other out here." It was phrased as an instruction.

"Well, I guess if we find her we could mention you're looking for her …" Jack offered with a fake smile. "This has been a nice little chat, but we really have to be on our way now."

Quicker than they could blink, the jaffa attacked. The fight was fast and furious, but the group of four stood little chance against the group of huge jaffa, and eventually even Teal'c had been relieved of his weapons and forced to the ground.

"You're going to help us, whether you like it or not." The ring-leader told them. "We know that your boy is with Vala willingly. When they hear that we have you as hostages, he'll convince her to come and buy your freedom. We _will_ get back what she owes us."

Jack and Sam looked at each other tiredly.

_What else could possibly go wrong?_

* * *

_So, for the first time, we have seen Luke ... also, in my weird and wonderful timeline, the events of 'Prometheus Unbound' still took place, so Vala knows Daniel. _

_Thanks for reading! Review me!_

_Beka :-P  
_


	21. Bad news

_**Found - part 21**_

_Here's the twenty-second chapter! Enjoy! Reviews are very very very very very very very very very very welcome!  
_

* * *

Luke turned the two halves of the broken Ancient tablet over in his hands. "Are you sure this is a treasure map?" He asked Vala, who was sitting in the pilot's seat of their small goa'uld cargo ship, her feet propped up on the dash.

"Of course I'm sure." She said automatically. After a second, a frown creased her forehead, and she turned to face him suspiciously. "Why do you ask?"

Luke shrugged. "It's just, I was expecting it to look more like a _map_. And why would a race as advanced as the Ancients resort to recording things by carving them into stone? It just doesn't add up."

Vala rose from her seat and snatched the tablet back from him. "Look, squirt, I've been around in this galaxy for a lot longer than you have. I'll decide whether or not the treasure map is a treasure map." She wrapped it back up reverently and stowed it in her bag.

Luke smirked. He'd heard the defensive tone in her voice and knew that meant he'd struck a nerve. "Ok. Forget I mentioned it."

He stared out of the window at the now familiar distortions of hyperspace. Every second they were getting so much closer to Earth. He couldn't decide whether he was excited, terrified, or both. As their arrival drew nearer, he occasionally found himself wondering what it would be like to stay with Vala. Despite her slippery nature, he'd grown a little attached to her, and he knew she was fond of him and was having fun turning him into her protégé.

As if sensing his thoughts, Vala turned to him. "Hey squirt." That was turning into a running nickname. He'd have to make sure it stopped if he did decide to stay with her. "What are you going to do when you get them to let you stay on Earth?"

Luke leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. "I don't know. Study, I guess, and then join their Stargate program when I'm old enough. I was considering becoming a scientist like my Mom, but I think the lack of action would bore me to death."

"You think those military boys see a lot of action? They're just stuck in their bases most of the time, and when they do get out, all their fun gets spoiled by having to follow _protocol_ and _mission objectives_. You wanna be a trader, you'll see _way_ more action that way. Trust me." She grinned at him, and he smiled back.

"The SGC doesn't have a program for space traders. If I want to go out into the galaxy, it's the military or academia."

"Then don't stay at the SGC."

"I have to."

"Why?"

Luke studied her face. Was she offering him the option of staying with her? "I have nowhere else to go."

"Didn't stop me." She remarked. She jumped up and stood behind his chair, spinning it round to face the stars. "You've got the talent for it, I can tell. You could be out _there_, a free agent, answerable to no one …" She cocked her head to one side. "If you want, I could get you started. Set you up with a bit of cargo to trade."

Luke sighed. She wasn't offering a spot as her side-kick, then. "Thanks, but –"

An alarm went off, interrupting the conversation. "What's that?" Luke asked nervously. Vala darted back to the pilot's chair.

"We're receiving a transmission." She answered, hands flitting over the controls. "It's a text message." She pressed a few more buttons, and the view screen was displaying a scrolling goa'uld script.

"What does it say?"

Vala waited a moment before answering, her eyes scanning the message, and then sat back in her chair. "Oh dear."

"What?" Luke couldn't stand the waiting, and Vala looked worried. Vala _never_ looked worried without good reason.

She got up again, and perched on the dash in front of Luke's chair. Taking his hands in hers, she tried to give him a reassuring smile. "Darling, there's been a development. I've just been relayed a message through back channels, from an alliance of jaffa who I owe a teensy bit of money to."

Luke frowned. That couldn't be it. She wouldn't hold his hands and play mother-hen if it was just a couple of jaffa calling in a debt. "And …?"

"They've taken some hostages to make sure I pay up."

He sighed in exasperation. "Vala …"

"I know, I know, I should pay my bills like a good girl, but that's not the problem."

"The jaffa taking hostages because of you isn't a problem?"

"Oh it is, it is, but not the main problem." She said hurriedly. "It's who the hostages are."

"Oh?"

"They're your parents."

For a moment, the ship was completely silent.

"Come again?" Luke said.

"The hostages are your parents." Vala repeated, looking at him like he was a bomb waiting to go off.

Luke frowned. "My parents are stuck on a planet with no Stargate, and no ships capable of interstellar travel, in another galaxy. The jaffa are lying to you."

Vala winced. "Are you sure?"

Luke nodded with an incredulous smile. "Yeah. Trust me, I'm sure."

She breathed a sigh of relief and abruptly dropped the 16 year old's hands. "Phew. That's a relief. We'd have got off to a _really _bad start with the SGC if I'd got a few of their people captured."

Luke frowned at her. "Yeah, but if they had believed it was their people, they might have helped us free them. As it stands, there are two people out there being held with their lives on the line, and they're relying on _you_ to save them."

Vala's mouth dropped open. "That's actually a good point. And its four people, not two."

"Oh? Who are they claiming the other two are?"

"A young boy who they didn't name and an old jaffa called Teal'c. I've heard of the jaffa, actually – he's quite famous as the revolutionist who started the downfall of the goa'uld and won freedom for the jaffa."

"Wait a minute, Teal'c? I've heard of him too, he used to be on SG1 with my mom and dad. Vala, if he's there, we have to save him."

Vala rolled her eyes at him. "Luke, if they lied about your mother and father, what's to stop them lying about the jaffa?"

"Well, we should at least check when we get to Earth – maybe find out if he's missing."

"I thought you wanted me to go and pay my debt now?" She asked with a small smirk.

"I do, but I don't think you're going to."

"You're right about that. With the absolute fortune I'm about to make on Earth, I can more than pay off my debt to our friendly jaffa colleagues, without having to sell valuable cargo in a rush and having to accept discount prices."

Luke shook his head. "I can't believe you sometimes."

Vala looked him straight in the eyes. "Hey, I'm trying to survive out here. Sometimes I have to fight dirty to protect my livelihood. If I sold all my cargo and then gave all of the revenue to the jaffa, then where would I be? I'd have nothing, and I'd be effectively finished, or at least seriously disadvantaged for a while. You don't know what its like."

He sighed. "I know, its just . . ."

"You don't like leaving people in harm's way. Don't worry, the jaffa want their money. If they kill the hostages, what possible incentive would I have to give it to them? They're gonna keep those people alive and captive until I pay, which gives us more than enough time to gather some capital." She assured him. "I'm going to send them a message, informing them that their money is on the way, but could be slightly delayed as I have to collect on a sale to get it."

Luke nodded. "Alright. So we're still headed for Earth?"

"Yup. We'll be there in 20 hours."

* * *

_What do you think? I was worried I'd made Vala seem a little too cold ... Anyhoo, let me know what you thought._

_**Message for tennessee14**: sorry, your email address wasn't included in the review so I couldn't reply to answer your question. The answer is Luke is Sam and Jack's son, Tally's younger brother. Look back at chapter 11, 'Luke's Story' for a more detailed answer!  
_

_Beka :-)  
_


	22. Arriving

**_Found - part 22_**

_Hi guys. Once again I find myself apologising for keeping you waiting for over a month. I'm so sorry. I'll try not to let it happen again, but real life keeps getting in the way. (Grrr, real life, why can't it mind its own business??)_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter. As you can probably tell, the end is almost in sight now! The bad news is I'm kinda getting an idea for a sequel to this ..._

_

* * *

_

Staff Sergeant Howard Mead ran up the staircase to the briefing room, and knocked loudly on Dr Weir's office door.

"Come in."

Howard entered, panting slightly, and handed a piece of fax paper to the SGC's commander. "This just came through from NORAD ma'am, a Goa'uld cargo ship has appeared in low Earth orbit. Telemetry indicates it emerged from hyper-space at around 0940 hours."

Dr Weir, her once brunette hair now streaked liberally with grey, nodded. "Do we know who they are? Have they attempted to communicate?"

"Yes ma'am." He indicated the bottom of the fax. "She claims to be a human woman who knows Dr Jackson. She says she has important information that could benefit us both."

Weir raised an eyebrow. "Really. Well, it's not everyday that we get offers of help. Have the Gemini check her out, and then, if she passes inspection, she can come here and explain what she means."

"Yes ma'am." Howard nodded and promptly left the office, leaving Elizabeth Weir with a curious smile on her face.

* * *

"Hello boys." Vala said with a wide smile, as she and Luke ringed aboard the Gemini to be greeted by six armed men.

"Ms Mal Doran?" A man whose name tag revealed him to be Major Wyatt asked. "We weren't expecting more than one of you."

"Oh, him?" Vala cast a glance back at Luke as though she'd forgotten he was there. "Don't worry about him, he's my … apprentice."

Wyatt nodded stiffly. "I'm going to have to ask you to open any bags you have for a routine search, reveal any weapons you have concealed about your person, and submit for a body search."

Vala smiled cheekily at him. "Well, if you wanted to feel me up officer, you could try plying me with dinner and a nice beverage. Much more civilized."

"Stand facing the wall and spread your arms and legs, please." Wyatt ordered. Luke complied immediately, and Vala reluctantly followed suit.

"This is terribly rude, you know." She protested. After removing a knife from her waistband and a zat from one of their bags, the airmen completed their search, and announced the pair were clean.

"If you'll please follow me ma'am, Dr Weir is expecting you." The major told her, and she and Luke collected their bags and followed him out of the ring room, Vala winking at Luke with a quick grin.

* * *

"Daniel?" Dr Weir knocked on the door frame of Daniel's office, only mildly surprised to find Tally with him.

"Elizabeth, come in." He replied, standing out of habit as she entered.

"I'll catch you later." Tally said, patting him on the back and smiling at Dr Weir as she excused herself, and left them alone.

"So, what can I do for you?" Daniel asked once Tally had gone.

"We just got a message from a woman who's orbiting Earth in a cargo ship. She says she has information that could help us." Elizabeth told him.

Daniel raised his eyebrows. "Oh? What kind of information?"

"Don't know yet, she's coming to the SGC to tell us more. I'd like you to be there to meet her."

"Alright. You think it might be about the Ori?" He guessed.

"I don't know, but she says she knows you, so I thought maybe you'd be a better judge of how far I can trust her."

"Who is she?"

"Her name is Vala Mal Doran."

Several expressions shifted through Daniel's face, and Elizabeth wasn't sure she liked the one he settled on.

"No."

She frowned at him. "No? What do you mean?"

"You can't trust her. Don't trust a thing she says, she's a thief and she's only interested in helping herself."

Elizabeth took a deep breath. "You think I should tell the Gemini to send her on her way?"

"Yes … no … y – I don't know. I guess there's a remote possibility that she has something useful to say, but I doubt she's here for our benefit."

"Well, we could meet with her, keep a wary eye, and just remember to take anything she tells us with a pinch of salt?" She suggested.

Daniel winced. "I guess. Do I really have to be there?"

"Yes. You know her, and I could use that kind of advantage, especially if we're dealing with someone untrustworthy."

He sighed. "When is she arriving?"

"Any minute." Weir half turned towards the door, and waited for him to follow.

Daniel forced a smile. "Great."

* * *

A flash of light briefly lit up the gate room, and then there were six extra people at the bottom of the ramp – Vala, Luke, and Major Wyatt's team.

"Well, don't you all have me surrounded." Vala commented with a smile.

"Welcome to the SGC, my name is Dr Elizabeth Weir." Dr Weir said, identifying herself as the leader in the room full of military men.

"Thank you so much for the lovely greeting party, we all had a wonderful time searching each other, didn't we boys?" Vala shot that last comment at Wyatt's team, and Luke rolled his eyes. Dr Weir's gaze zeroed in on the boy.

"I wasn't told there were two of you."

"She claims that he's an apprentice." Wyatt told her.

"Ah, corrupting young minds now, are you?" Daniel said. Vala walked over to him and beamed.

"Daniel. It's so good to see you. How've you been?"

"Oh, you know, same old, same old. Why are you here?"

"My dear Daniel, I thought we could spend some quality time together first, catch up, maybe you could show me your quarters …" She said suggestively, smiling impishly at him. Luke rolled his eyes again in tandem with Daniel, and stepped forward.

"We have a tablet which we believe was written by the Ancients, and we have reason to believe that one of your allies is being held hostage." He said, after finally losing patience with Vala's flirting. She turned around and glared at him.

"What happened to letting _me_ do the talking?" She hissed.

"Who?" Daniel asked, now entirely focused on Luke.

"A jaffa called Teal'c."

Daniel's eyebrows rose, his eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open.

"Just him? There were some other people with him …"

Vala sighed impatiently. "The jaffa who captured them _claim_ to have four hostages. Although we know they lied about the identity of two of them, so who knows?"

"Also, I have information about two of your people who went missing over eighteen years ago." Luke continued.

Daniel's eyebrows rose even higher. That sounded oddly familiar.

"Oh?" Weir prompted.

"Colonel Jack O'Neill and Major Samantha Carter. They're stranded on a planet called Amdra in a different galaxy, but I know where that galaxy is in relation to this one. If you have the power to get there, I can take you."

Vala lost all patience with Luke, and grabbing his arm, pulled him over to have a quick whispered conversation with him. "What are you _doing?_" She demanded. "I thought we agreed that _I_ would handle this, and that we'd get to the bit about your parents _after_ they rescue the hostages and let me find that Ancient treasure?"

He glared back and pulled his arm out of her grasp.

"Who are you?" Daniel called over to the boy.

Luke walked back over to the group, and straightened. "I'm Luke Daniel O'Neill, their son."

* * *

_What did you think? Please let me know. Review me!_

_Beka  
_


	23. Not quite how she'd planned it

_**Found - part 23**_

_Two updates in two days - and you know why? It snowed!!! The end result being I can't get into uni today and so have buckets of free time. Isn't snow fantastic?_

_

* * *

_"You're … you're Luke?" Daniel stuttered, staring at the boy.

"Yes, I am. If you don't mind my asking, you almost sound like you've heard of me …?

"Well … yes! We rescued your mother, father, sister and another boy from Amdra a week ago! They were with Teal'c."

Luke's eyes widened and he stopped breathing for a minute. Vala's mouth dropped open, and she put a supportive hand on Luke's shoulder. "The jaffa said that two of the hostages were Luke's parents. We didn't believe them, but if what you say is true …"

"Then they're most likely hostages as well." Daniel said, nodding at her. "Dr Weir –"

"Let's continue this discussion in the briefing room." Weir cut him off. "And perhaps Tally should be called."

"Tally? She's here? I mean, she's not a hostage too?" Luke asked.

"No, she stayed behind with us due to … unavoidable circumstances." Daniel told him. He looked at Weir. "I'll get her, and we'll be there in a few minutes."

* * *

"Tally?" Daniel poked his head round Dr Lee's door, and saw the young girl bent over a microscope. At the sound of her name she looked up and smiled at him.

"Hi Daniel. What's up?"

He shifted uneasily; after all, he was about to tell her that her parents and her child's father were being held hostage, and apparently for nothing, as Luke was here. "Come with me, would you?"

She nodded and hopped off her stool, following him out of the lab.

"Tally, we found Luke." Daniel said on the way to the elevator. Tally stopped in her tracks.

"_Really_?"

"Yes, he's here, but … Tally, _he_ came to _us_. He had no idea you and your parents had left Amdra, and apparently your mom and dad, Jase, and Teal'c, are in a bit of trouble." He stepped into the elevator and Tally followed.

So many questions were shooting through her head. "What kind of trouble?"

"That's what Luke, and his _friend_, Vala Mal Doran, are about to tell us. I'd love to know how those two teamed up."

"But, Luke's ok?"

"Yes. He seems to be fine." Daniel smiled at her, and led her out of the elevator towards the briefing room. He stopped outside the door. "He's in here. Are you ok?"

Tally took a shaky breath, nodded, and pushed the door open. Luke was facing the other way, talking with Vala.

"Luke?" The boy span round at the sound of his sister's voice.

"Tally!" He darted over to her and flung his arms tightly around her. Tally couldn't help it, she burst into tears and clung to him.

Daniel went to join Dr Weir and Vala, watching the reunion fondly. It was Vala who lost her patience first. She headed over to the pair and gently patted Luke on the shoulder.

"Luke? Touching as this is, we have a little problem on our hands, remember?"

"Yes." He pulled away from Tally, and led her over to the briefing room's table. Following the boy's lead, Daniel, Weir and Vala sat down at it.

"Ok, if I'm understanding the situation correctly, Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, Teal'c, and a boy called Jase, all left the Gemini prior to its arrival here in the hopes of finding the Colonel and Major's son, Luke. However, they were unsuccessful, and managed to get themselves taken hostage by some jaffa, and in the meantime you, Luke, heard about their capture and made your way here with Ms Mal Doran and an Ancient tablet?"

"They're being held hostage?" Tally gasped.

"Yes. Vala and I heard about it but we didn't believe them because I had no idea you guys had left Amdra." Luke replied, meeting Vala's gaze. She had made him promise not to tell them about the reason behind their capture, on the understanding that _she_ would. _If necessary_, Vala added in her head.

"Do you know _where_ they're being held?" Dr Weir asked.

Vala shrugged. "I think so. I can certainly narrow it down to a top three most likely list."

"Do you know _why_?" Daniel asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Daniel! Are you implying _I_ might have something to do with this?" Vala replied indignantly.

Daniel switched his gaze to Luke, who quickly caved and nodded. Vala swatted his arm angrily.

"Hey!" Tally shot at Vala, glaring.

"He ratted me out!" Vala protested.

"No one hits my brother and gets away with it." Tally said murderously.

"That's enough." Weir cut in, before it got out of hand. "Vala, why are my people being held hostage?"

Vala huffed for a minute and didn't answer, until Luke kicked her under the table. "Alright, I may owe them a teensy bit of money, and somehow these jaffa found out that Luke was travelling with me and that the group they captured were looking for him."

"How much money?" Daniel asked, glaring at her.

"200 crates of weapons-grade naquada." She replied quickly, trying an innocent smile.

"200 … you told me that what we'd find here would cover it!" Luke sent an accusing glare her way.

"What you'd find here …?" Weir prodded.

"The tablet is supposed to reveal the location of a stash of Ancient treasure on Earth." Luke told them.

"Can I see?" Daniel asked, and Luke fished it out of Vala's bag before she could stop him.

"That is it! You're off the team!" She hissed at him angrily. Luke just rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to need a little while to translate this, it seems to be in code." Daniel said, his eyes scanning the tablet.

"Well of course it's in code." Vala said impatiently. All eyes turned to her.

"Do you have the cipher?" Weir asked.

"Why, yes I do." Vala said.

"Give it to me." Daniel demanded. Vala just smiled sweetly at him.

"Only if you deal with these jaffa and give me a fifty percent cut of what you find."

"We're not giving you a cut." Daniel retorted.

"Twenty-five percent?"

"Vala."

"Oh fine, ten percent, but that's my final offer."

"Look, can we just rescue the others and haggle over this tablet later?" Tally cut in impatiently.

"I think that's probably for the best." Weir agreed. "Ms Mal Doran, work with Major Hayley and Major Wyatt, I want every detail you have on the possible locations of the hostages."

"Dr Weir, I'd like to help." Tally said quickly, as Dr Weir stood up to leave. Elizabeth Weir smiled kindly.

"Tally, I think we agreed you'd be best placed in a non-combative role due to your condition."

"What condition?" Luke asked, confused.

"Just let me help with the planning and tactical analysis then? Trust me, I'm good at this stuff."

Weir considered it. "Alright."

"And me?" Luke asked hopefully.

"No, you're coming with me for a more thorough debriefing." Weir told him.

"But –"

"Go on Luke." Tally squeezed his hand. "I'll be here when you're done."

He reluctantly followed Dr Weir into her office. Tally sighed and looked at Daniel.

"Don't worry, we'll get them out." He told her, before he followed Weir and Luke. She nodded.

"Yeah."

* * *

_What did you think? I'd love to get some feedback from you guys, so please please review._

_Beka :-)  
_


	24. Hell hath no fury

_**Found - part 24**_

_This is a very short chapter, and it's been a long time coming, and I want to apologise for that. I've been unwell a lot recently and its been difficult finding the motivation for writing. As uni breaks up in a few weeks I expect I'll have more time and energy for it then, so please bear with me - sorry._

_This is a little scene I wanted to write between Tally and Vala. I thought (with them both being strong opinionated and passionate women) it would be a fun concept. I'd also love for them to end up friends, though I haven't figured out how to wrangle that one yet._

_Enjoy!_

_

* * *

_It was lunchtime. Ordinarily Tally would rejoice at this hour of the day, because there really was nothing quite as wonderful as Tau'ri cuisine – though this opinion frequently bought her some odd looks from Daniel or Bill Lee – and no better place to people-watch than the commissary. However, today was not such a day.

Today, she sat across from a raven-haired woman who was having just as wonderful a time with the food as _she_ usually did, and it was driving her crazy. Vala Mal Doran seemed not to notice Tally's icy gaze, engrossed as she was in her lemon chicken, and continued chatting away chirpily. When Tally's white-knuckled grip on the plastic spoon that came with her fruit cup snapped, however, Vala noticed. She stopped talking, sat back in her chair, and regarded Tally thoughtfully.

"I get the feeling you don't like me very much." She said eventually.

Tally gave her a fake smile. "Oh really? Whatever gave you that idea?"

"The glare you're shooting at me. And the rather frosty reception I've had from you ever since I arrived. Now I'm a smart woman, I know you're probably a teensy bit upset because I'm indirectly responsible for the mess your parents got into –"

"_Indirectly?_" Tally cut in incredulously.

"– but I had no way of knowing that would happen, and I came here knowing that you people were their best shot at getting rescued."

"So you only had their best interests at heart? Please, spare me the theatrics. You came here because of the Ancient treasure. If it wasn't for Luke, you probably wouldn't even have _mentioned_ the hostages, would you?" Tally said scathingly.

"Now that's not fair. Maybe I occasionally don't pay my bills, but I don't mess around with the lives of innocent people. Not intentionally, anyway. No matter who they were, I would never have just left them to their fates." Vala protested.

Tally shook her head with a disbelieving smile. "Whatever."

Vala rolled her eyes, and tried a different tactic. "Luke likes me."

"Luke tolerated you because he wanted to get to Earth, and you said you could get him there." Tally snapped.

"Did he tell you that?"

Tally paused, uncomfortably. "You know he didn't because I haven't seen him when _you_ haven't been around yet. But I could tell in that briefing, he doesn't like what you do."

"Don't be so sure. I offered him a life like mine, and if he wasn't so hell-bent on finding his family, he would have taken it." Vala popped another piece of chicken in her mouth and chewed slowly, waiting for Tally's reaction.

"You're lying."

"Am I? Why don't you ask him when he gets out of his briefing with Dr Weir? He likes the adventure, that boy. Academia or the military would stifle his potential." She squinted at Tally appraisingly. "And I suspect the same could be said about you."

Tally shifted awkwardly. "What's your point?"

"I want to help rescue your parents because it's the right thing to do, not because I want something from the Tau'ri. Luke is a fantastic boy with abounding potential and I've grown very fond of him, so I don't want to see him get stuck in an office studying rocks from morbidly boring planets which he never sees for himself, or playing the 'yes sir, no sir, may I kiss your boots sir' game for the military." Vala's voice rose as she reached the end of her tirade, and so when she finished there was silence in the commissary as everyone watched the two women, before going back to their own conversations.

Tally looked at her food, not sure what to say to that. Vala shook herself and settled back in her chair, letting her indignant feelings ebb a little. "I guess you're coming on the rescue mission?" Vala asked, to break the silence. Tally shook her head.

"No, I can't. I'm … I'm pregnant. I'm not allowed off world. That's why I'm here and not with my parents as another hostage."

Vala was momentarily stunned. "Oh. Congratulations."

"The fourth hostage is my baby's father." She added. Vala's smile fell a few notches.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"We'll get them back." The older woman said reassuringly.

"You'd better." Tally backed her statement up with another glare.

"We will. And then we can all go on a nice friendly treasure hunt together."

Tally rolled her eyes and got up, leaving Vala at the table.

"What?" Vala called after Tally's retreating back. "It'll be fun!"

* * *

_Please review - let me know what you think of the Vala/Tally dynamic!_

_Beka  
_


	25. Rescue mission

_**Found - part 25**_

_The holidays from uni are here, and so is chapter 25! I hope you enjoy it._

_

* * *

_Vala stepped out of the wormhole and shivered. The evening air was crisp, and a chilled breeze ruffled her hair. She felt the air move around her and knew SG-1 and Daniel had proceeded ahead of her, made effectively invisible by their personal Sodan cloaking devices. Tossing her head back, she marched toward the tavern the jaffa had laid claim to, a bag of gold hefted over her shoulder.

She had not even rapped on the door of the tavern before the door was opened and she was roughly grabbed and hauled inside.

"Hey, hey, hey! Watch where you put those hands!" She protested, dusting herself off indignantly.

"Do you have our money?" A large jaffa dressed entirely in leather advanced on her.

"Yes I do. Do you have the hostages?"

"Of course. You'll get them if you pay up." He twitched the curtains at the front of the tavern. "Where's the boy?"

"What boy?" Vala adopted an innocent smile.

"Don't play games. We know you've been travelling with a boy. We have his parents."

"Ah yes. I left him on a nice friendly planet, out of harm's way. You know what teenagers are like, he might have tried something stupid and heroic and got me killed."

The jaffa snorted humorlessly. "Wise move." He nodded at two of his goons, and they grabbed her arms.

"Give us what you owe."

Vala cocked her head. "It's in the bag."

"With interest?" The jaffa asked. They yanked the bag out of her grasp and peered inside. "This isn't enough."

"Well you didn't _tell_ me about the interest!" Vala protested. "In that bag is the exact amount I owe you."

"Well that's not good enough." He loomed over her menacingly. "And you are going to suffer the consequences."

"Hey!" The menace was distracted by a cry from one of his associates.

"What is it?" He demanded impatiently, as gunfire erupted in the back room of the tavern.

"The prisoners are escaping!" All but one of the goons rushed out to the back room, leaving Vala with the relatively easy task of kicking her remaining guard upside the head and knocking him out, before running after them.

Meanwhile, Sam, Jack, Teal'c and Jase were busy attempting to hold their own against the jaffa, with the zats they'd been passed by SG-1, while their invisible friends backed them up. The fight was going well: with the jaffa's attention focused on the visible targets, SG-1 and Daniel were able to move around and take out the jaffa with little danger of being shot.

Vala burst into the room and immediately had to duck a blow from a particularly burly jaffa. She shot him with her own previously concealed zat, and ran for cover. Quickly scanning the room, she took in the positions of the four hostages and the jaffa; she could only guess at SG-1's respective locations. An older man and woman were huddled together behind a table, taking shots with impressive accuracy – they must be Luke's parents, Vala thought. A jaffa was crouched not far away, and she guessed from his direction of fire and the golden tattoo on his forehead that this was Teal'c. The last hostage, a boy who couldn't be more than a few years older that Luke, was stood behind a pillar, shooting rapidly if not entirely accurately. She shot two jaffa who were advancing on her, and edged her way towards the youngest hostage.

And then she saw the jaffa coming up behind them. He was going to shoot the boy.

No.

She dived, and knocked Jase out of the way before the staff blast could hit him, but a searing pain in her leg told her she hadn't been so lucky. Impressively, the boy recovered quickly and took out the jaffa with a single shot from his zat, before dragging her backwards to the overturned table Teal'c was installed behind. The battle was over in seconds after that, as SG-1 took care of the few remaining jaffa.

Daniel was the first to shut off his personal cloak. "Hey guys." He greeted Sam, Jack and Teal'c with a wave.

"Nice rescue." Jack commented, levering himself up. He jumped as Jennifer Haley materialized right next to him. "Haley."

"Colonel." She nodded at him. "The building's secure. All the jaffa are incapacitated."

"Thanks."

"Er, guys?" Jase called out to them, still half-cradling Vala. "I think she needs help."

"Who _is_ she?" Sam asked, making her way over to the injured woman.

"Vala Mal Doran." Vala answered. "Now if you wouldn't mind, I have a hole in my leg, and I'd quite like to fix it." She grimaced against the pain, as Sam and Jack exchanged shocked looks.

"We were here looking for you!" Sam exclaimed.

Vala looked at her askance. "You were?" Daniel passed her a goa'uld healing device, and she quickly slid her hand into it and held it over her leg.

Sam and Jack's eyes widened even further at this.

"Used to be a host." Vala explained shortly at their alarmed looks.

"Listen, guys, there's something you need to know." Daniel said, putting a hand on Sam's arm. "When Vala here turned up at the SGC, she wasn't alone. Luke was with her."

Sam nearly fainted, and sat down heavily on a conveniently placed chair. Jack put a hand on her shoulder for support.

"Are you sure it's him?"

"Yes, Tally has confirmed it. It is definitely Luke."

"Is he –" Jack started.

"He's fine." Daniel assured him. "He's safe back at the SGC with Tally."

Vala finished healing her leg, and with Jase's help, she stood up. "Well there's no point in hanging around here."

"The woman has a point." Major Wyatt commented, and held the door open for them. "Let's move out."

They all filed out, Sam and Jack following in a daze.

* * *

Tally gripped Luke's hand tightly as they waited in the control room. If the rescue mission had been successful, SG-1 should be returning with the hostages any moment now. Dr Weir stood with them, slightly uncomfortable about the youngsters' presence, in case the mission had been a bust.

The gate suddenly started spinning, making the two O'Neill children jump. Everyone watched tensely, waiting for the IDC. The wormhole formed behind the iris, and the seconds ticked by.

"Sergeant?" Weir prompted, impatiently.

"Nothing yet ma'am …. wait, we're receiving an IDC. It's SG-1."

"Open the iris."

Tally's grip on Luke's hand tightened.

With a wet noise, ten people trooped one by one through the wormhole. Luke and Tally's eyes scanned the people urgently as they came through; Daniel, Vala, Haley, Wyatt … Teal'c!

Luke let go of his sister's hand and flew down the stairs, Tally not far behind. If Teal'c was there …

They got into the room just as Sam, Jack and Jase came through the gate; Luke was wrapped in his mother's arms before anyone could blink. Within another second, Jase had swept Tally into his arms, and Jack held his wife and son tightly. SG-1, Daniel, Vala, Teal'c and Dr Weir all looked on fondly from the bottom of the ramp. Jack looked up at Daniel and Weir gratefully as Tally joined the group hug with Sam and Luke, still holding Jase's hand.

"Thank you." Jack said with feeling.

"You're welcome." Daniel replied. "But it's really Vala you should thank."

"She took care of me when I got to this galaxy." Luke told them.

"And she just saved my life." Jase added. Tally looked up at him sharply, and then at Vala, a strange expression crossing her delicate features.

"Thank you." Sam said to the dark haired woman, tearfully.

"You're welcome." Vala said nonchalantly, tossing her hair back behind her shoulders. Tally let go of her family and walked down the ramp to Vala. She stood in front of the older woman, struggling for the right words.

"I … I think I misjudged you."

Vala smiled brightly at her. "I told you it would all work out."

"Yes, you did. Vala … thank you, for saving Jase's life." Tally said sincerely.

Vala winked at her, and skipped after SG-1, hooking her arm through Daniel's as they headed out to the infirmary.

Jase wrapped his arms round Tally from behind. "Friend of yours?"

Tally smiled slightly.

"Maybe."

* * *

_What did you think? I could have made the reunion with Sam, Jack and Luke more drawn out and mushy, but ... I didn't. The next chapter is the last.  
_

_Beka :-)  
_


	26. A birthday party

**_Found - part 26_**

_I can't quite believe it's happened, but this is the last chapter. I have finally finished the Lost/Found story. I hope you enjoy the ending._

_

* * *

_Laughter erupted from the living room, and Sam smiled to herself at the sound of it. She loved it when the whole family was together. She pulled a packet of candles down from the cupboard above her head, and placed a single candle in the centre of the cake. Looking round the kitchen, she found the box of matches that Jack had left by the cooker, and with one stroke against the lighter paper lit a match, and held it to the candle until the flame caught, making the birthday cake complete. She poked her head around the door, and nodded to Jack, who promptly doused the lights in the living room. As it was twilight outside, it wasn't completely dark in the room, but it was enough to give the candle more effect.

Sam carried the cake into the living room, serenaded by eight voices in a rousing if slightly off-key chorus of 'Happy Birthday'. She placed the cake down on the low table, in front of her one year-old granddaughter, held tightly in Tally's lap. The little girl was fascinated by the candle, but safe in Tally's arms, she couldn't touch it like she wanted.

" … Happy Birthday dear Lana, Happy Birthday to you!" Cassandra Fraiser, Vala Mal Doran, and Luke O'Neill were the last to finish the song, drawing out the last word in a comic attempt at harmony. Jack swatted Luke's head affectionately and mock-glared at Cassie and Vala, making the younger of the two women giggle.

The candle blown out (more by Tally than Lana), Teal'c turned the lights back on, and settled beside Daniel on the sofa to watch as Tally cuddled her daughter and Jase cut the birthday cake. The young family were positively adorable. They'd been living on their own for a few months now, in an apartment not far from the house Sam, Jack and Luke lived in, and coping admirably with the new situation. Tally had a job at the SGC, as a lab assistant to Dr Lee and studying physics under the tuition of her mother. Jase was in college, studying engineering, and was loving every second of it. For a while they had wrestled with the problem of what to do with Lana while they studied or worked, but Jack quickly volunteered to take care of her during the day. He had no desire to sit on the sidelines in a full-time consultancy position at the SGC, and he wasn't particularly welcome there in light of Kinsey's presidency anyway. And he loved the time he spent with his granddaughter.

Luke, meanwhile, was spending half his time at home with a paid tutor, and half at the SGC. Jack and Sam had attempted to put him into high school, but that idea had soon fallen flat – Luke's education up to the age of 16 had been vastly different to the average kid his age, and the school was in some subjects too far behind him, and in others infinitely ahead. After being tutored a little at the SGC under Sam and Daniel, to supplement the basic classes his home tutor was giving him, he discovered a surprising aptitude and interest in archaeology, much to Daniel's delight and Jack's horror. Now he spent the mornings with his tutor and the afternoons learning archaeology and history from Daniel, or science and math from Sam when Daniel was busy.

In the year and a half since Vala had come through the gate with the Ancient tablet, Daniel and SG-1 had been on a desperate race to locate the San Graal, and use it to destroy the Ori. In that time, Vala had become an integral part of the SGC, and she was starting to consider it her home. And now, with the Ori gone for good, Daniel was beginning to relax for the first time in over twenty-five years, and even felt the first stirrings of feelings for the raven-haired newcomer; not that he was ready to admit that yet. He hadn't yet figured out whether she was genuine in her advances towards him, or was just messing with him.

Later that evening, after Cassie, Vala, Daniel and Teal'c had left, and Tally and Jase had fallen asleep on the sofa, Jack and Sam sat on the steps of their back porch, with their granddaughter sleeping peacefully in Sam's arms. Sam rested her head on Jack's shoulder, and gazed at the stars.

"This is what it was all for." Sam murmured quietly, so as not to wake the baby.

Jack turned his head to frown at his wife. "Huh?"

"Moments like this. You know, all the things we went through; fighting the goa'uld and ignoring how we felt about each other, trying to bring our kids up on a world that had barely mastered electricity. Losing Luke for a year. All the heart-ache and trials."

"You're feeling sappy tonight aren't you?" Jack smirked at her.

"Don't poke fun at me, you know what I mean." Sam scolded with a smile. "Don't you feel the same way, that it was all worth it for moments like this? Sitting in a wonderful home with our kids safe and warm. And beautiful little Lana here." She smiled down at the sleeping one year-old.

"I think you're absolutely barmy." Jack said, and kissed her temple affectionately. "But I do know what you mean. It's nice that everything worked out. Eventually."

"Grumpy old man." Sam grumbled with a chuckle.

"Sentimental old woman." Jack retorted, grinning from ear to ear. "But I love you anyway."

"And I love you Jack."

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, before Lana stirred in her sleep and whimpered a little.

"Come on, let's go in before we freeze our butts off." Jack said, levering himself up, and giving Sam a hand, encumbered as she was with the baby.

"Eloquent as ever."

"What do you want, poetry?" Jack held his hands up in mock impatience.

She grinned at him as they went inside, and silently laid Lana down in her cot in the living room, careful not to wake Tally and Jase.

They turned the lights off, locked the doors and windows, and went to bed. After a few more whispered words of love, the house was asleep.

* * *

_I hope you liked it. I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has reviewed over the course of this story. It has been a massive encouragement to me, and the story probably wouldn't have happened without you. I love you all to bits!_

_Please let me know what you thought of the ending, and the story in general._

_Your happy writer, Beka :-D  
_


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